Transform your organization with ANCC Well-Being Excellence™, setting the standard for a healthier workplace.

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Identify strengths, bridge gaps, and set actionable goals to elevate workforce morale and engagement.

Organizational Well-Being Excellence Assessment
Explore our tools, guides, and references to support your organization’s path to well-being excellence.

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Healthcare worker burnout and staff shortages have put immense pressure on healthcare organizations, intensifying nursing and physician turnover. In response, the National Academies of Medicine (NAM) launched the National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being in 2022, urging healthcare leaders to take meaningful action. But the question remains: how do you measure the success of your well-being programs?

Well-Being Excellence offers a solution by providing evidence-based standards to evaluate and enhance your organization's well-being efforts. This credential builds upon ANCC's legacy of recognizing healthcare organizations that prioritize their workforce's well-being and foster a culture of safety and health.

By earning this credential, organizations demonstrate a firm commitment to creating a supportive work environment, attracting and retaining top talent, and improving overall employee satisfaction and engagement.

Benefits of Well-Being Excellence :

Strengthen recruitment and retention efforts Boost workforce well-being and morale Improve employee engagement and satisfaction Enhance organizational resilience Establish advanced practices in well-being programs Position your organization as a market leader in healthcare well-being Potential consideration for deemed elements with other ANCC credentialing programs

How to Get Started: Take the first step by completing our Well-Being Self-Assessment to evaluate your current programs and identify areas for improvement.

Take the first step toward transforming your organization's well-being program! Our Organizational Well-Being Excellence Assessment empowers you to dive deep into your current initiatives and identify key opportunities for growth. By evaluating your efforts against essential well-being criteria, you'll uncover areas where your program excels and discover where improvements can drive even greater success. This is your chance to make impactful changes, foster a healthier work environment, and show your commitment to workforce well-being.

Ready to take action? Complete the self-assessment now and start your organization's journey toward well-being excellence!

Take the Organizational Well-Being Excellence Assessment

Corey Feist CEO and Co-Founder of the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes Foundation, which leads the ALL IN: Wellbeing First for Healthcare coalition
Workplace conditions must continue to improve to support the needs of both our caregivers and our patients. Programs, Well-Being Excellence , are critical for healthcare organizations to foster a work environment where their policies and practices reduce burnout, normalize help-seeking, and strengthen professional wellbeing.

The development of Well-Being Excellence is the culmination of extensive research and collaboration with expert panelists. By engaging in a pilot process across diverse healthcare organizations, ANCC has refined a credential that addresses real-world challenges of enhancing workforce well-being organization wide.

Bernadette Mazurek Melnyk PhD, APRN-CNP, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN, Vice President for Health Promotion, Chief Wellness Officer, The Ohio State University
Well-being is not a nicety; it is a necessity. Being the first chief wellness officer in the nation at a university that includes an academic health center, I have experienced first-hand how creating a sustained wellness culture and taking an evidence-based multi-component strategic approach from top leadership to the grass roots of the organization improves population health and well-being as well as a positive return on and value of investment for the organization. The new ANCC credential is a wonderful mechanism to recognize hospitals and healthcare systems programs that are deeply committed to the health and well-being of their people.
Katie Boston-Leary, PhD, MBA, MHA, RN, NEA-BC, FADLN, Senior Vice President of Equity and Engagement for the ANA Enterprise Alison Cuccia, DrPH, MSPH, Research Manager at ANA Kathy Driscoll, MSN, RN, NEA-BC, CCM,SVP, Chief Nursing Officer  Humana Reginald Farrar, SPHR, Director of Human Resources Inclusivity at Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing J. Corey Feist, JD, MBA, Co-Founder and CEO of the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes' Foundation Mariana Capati, DNP, MBA, RN, AMB-BC, NEA-BC, Senior Director of Nursing, Quality and Safety Improvement Consultant, Kaiser Permanente of the Mid-Atlantic States Mary S. Koithan, PhD, RN, CNS-BC, FAAN, Professor and Dean at Washington State University College of Nursing
Daniel Marchalik, MD, MBA Executive Director, MedStar Health Center for Wellbeing George C. McFarland, MSW. Founder, President, and CEO of McFarland Associates, Inc Patricia McGaffigan, RN, MS, CPPS. Senior Advisor, Safety and President, Certification Board for Professionals In Patient Safety, Institute for Healthcare Improvement Bernadette Mazurek Melnyk, PhD, APRN-CNP, FAANP, FNAP, FAAN, Vice President for Health Promotion, Chief Wellness Officer, The Ohio State University Angela Patterson, DNP, FNP-BC, NEA-BC, FAANP, Chief Nurse Practitioner Officer, CVS Health MinuteClinic Stephanie Pitts, DNP, RN, CPN, VA-BC, NEA-BC, Vice President, Strategic Programs and Innovation, B. Braun Medical Inc

Explore the 2025 ANCC Well-Being Excellence Abbreviated Manual for essential guidance on elevating your organization's well-being program.

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Ensure proper submission with the Well-Being Excellence Document Submission Guide, outlining required standards and formatting.

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Access aligned references supporting the Well-Being Excellence for a comprehensive approach to workforce well-being initiatives.

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Manual Clarification: When going through the Well-Being Excellence credential process it is important to note that there may have been changes to the version of the Well-Being Excellence Manual you are working from. Changes may be made to the Well-Being Excellence Application Manual at any time, and applicants are required to review and comply with the requirements in the Well-Being Excellence Application Manual and all Well-Being Excellence Application Manual updates. Application manual updates supersede the hardcopy manual requirements. The latest Pathway Application Manual updates can be found on the Well-Being Excellence website by clicking here.

Registration for Well-Being Excellence opens December 1, 2024. Prepare your submission in advance to meet key deadlines and ensure timely participation.

Application Phases: Registration: Opens December 1, 2024 Application Components: Submit the Well-Being Excellence Document and have the opportunity to participate in an optional Well-Being Survey. ANCC Commission Review: Final decisions will be made by the ANCC Commission.

 

Application Deadlines: March 1st Cycle: Register by July-March of the prior year July 1st Cycle: Register by November-July of the prior year December 1st Cycle: Register by April-December of the prior year

 

Well-Being Excellence Document Submission Cycle Complete the Applicant Registration between 8 - 12 months prior to the intended submission cycle
Note: Depending on application volume, a program may be placed into the next available cycle when/if the Well-Being Excellence review cycle has reached capacity. Notification will be provided on the Well-Being Excellence website when a cycle is full. Questions? Email wellbeingexcellence@ana.org
Step 1: 

Prior to registering to apply for the Well-Being Excellence credential, all interested organizations must meet the eligibility requirements.

Eligibility requirements:

Nurses must be employed in the settings applying for the well-being excellence credential. No minimum number of nurses. Types of settings: hospitals and other clinical care settings, universities, professional associations, technology, pharmaceutical, medical equipment companies, insurers, others Minimum number of employees: 10 across all participating sites No limit on the number of sites Applicant may choose to apply as a system or single entity
Step 2:

After eligibility is determined, the organization must then complete application registration via the Registration for the Well-Being Excellence Credential application form. All applicant registration must be received 8 -12 months prior to the intended Well-Being Excellence Document submission cycle date.

Applicant Registration includes: Completing the registration form. Uploading the Well-Being Executive Sponsor curriculum vitae. Payment of the non-refundable Applicant Registration fee ($1,000) at the time of application. NOTE: An invoice with payment instructions will be emailed within 14 business days of completing the registration form.

Remittance address:
ANCC Pathway
P.O. Box 505035
St. Louis, MO 63150-5035

If paying by credit card, ACH or Wire Transfer, email the Well-Being Excellence Office for more information at wellbeingexcellence@ana.org.

Fee Structure

Refer to the calculator by downloading the Well-Being Excellence Fee Calculator file.