Kathleen Bartholomew

Kathleen Bartholomew: Profile

Kathleen Bartholomew, RN, MN, a registered nurse and counselor, has been a national speaker for the nursing profession for the past six years. As the manager of a 57 bed surgical unit in Seattle, Kathleen quickly recognized that creating a culture where staff felt a sense of belonging was critical to retention. Throughout Swedish Medical Center Kathleen spoke to the numerous factors which propel our society toward isolation and encouraged staff to connect and value one another. During her tenure as manager, staff, physician and patient satisfaction improved significantly as she implemented her down-to earth strategies for creating community. Despite the nursing shortage, Kathleen could always depend on a waiting list of nurses and nursing assistants for her unit. (Manion, J., Bartholomew, K. 2004. Community in the workplace. Journal of nursing Administration 34(1.)

Kathleen’s Bachelor’s Degree is in Liberal Arts with a strong emphasis on Sociology. This background laid the foundation for her to correctly identify the norms and mores particular to healthcare – specifically physician-nurse relationships and nurse-to-nurse hostility. For her Master’s Thesis she authored “Speak Your Truth: Proven Strategies for Effective Nurse-Physician Communication which is the only book to date which addresses physician-nurse issues. Exceeding marketing expectations, Speak Your Truth was well-received by staff nurses who could easily resonate with Kathleen’s narrative style and “down in the trenches” material. Kathleen consistently captures her audience with the power of story as her participant evaluations illustrate.

In December of 2005, Kathleen resigned her position as manager in order to write a second book on horizontal violence in nursing. The expression, “why nurses eat their young” has existed for many years in the nursing profession (and has troubled many in the profession). In her book, Ending Nurse to Nurse Hostility (2006), Kathleen offers the first comprehensive and compassionate look at the etiology, impact and solutions to horizontal violence. With statistics demonstrating that 60% of new grads leave their first position within six months because of some form of lateral violence, this subject cannot be ignored. This summer Kathleen presented her work at the International Sigma Theta Tau Conference in Vienna.

Kathleen’s passion for nursing is infectious. Her thoughtful presentations inter-laced with research reawaken every nurse’s commitment and love of nursing. Her most ardent desire is to empower nurses through knowledge and the power of story. Every nurse that hears her is inspired.