4 strategies to build trust and resilience in healthcare leadership

Healthcare is a commitment to serve. 

Beyond the hospital systems, patient data, and cutting-edge treatments, healthcare boils down to people helping people. 

This is a reality Bryan Mills, President and CEO of Community Health Network in Indiana, brings to life as he guides his organization from the front line with personal connections, transparent communication, and a steadfast commitment to trust.

For healthcare professionals and leaders, Mills’ approach offers a blueprint for navigating today’s challenges—from workforce pressures to evolving patient expectations. 

In an NRC Health Patient No Longer podcast, host Ryan Donohue discusses PX, workforce, and consumerism with Mills from the CEO’s perspective. 

Below, we’ll explore how personal connections, transparency, and trust lay a foundation for resilience and improve patient experience (PX).

Bryan Mills begins with the fundamentals of healthcare leadership by emphasizing the importance of relationships. 

“I’ve always said my job is to coach your team,” he shared. “The games change, our strategy changes, the world changes. But I’ve got to be the coach of this team.” 

This guiding principle shapes Mills’ approach to building trust with employees, patients, and community members.

For example, each Monday, Mills meets with new employees during orientation to personally welcome them. 

Mills believes this is more than a formality, emphasizing, “I think it’s important for me to go connect with everybody in that room and tell them who we are, what we are, how we work, and what our mission is.” 

This personal engagement sets the tone for new hires, demonstrating that every role contributes to shaping the patient experience.

Such a philosophy permeates the entire organization. Mills makes it a point to visit employees and patients, even in the smallest ways. 

“I park as far as I possibly can and walk through so many different employees on the way to my destination,” he explained. 

This commitment to accessibility stands out and reinforces the notion that no one, not even the CEO, is above the day-to-day challenges of healthcare.

Takeaway: Listen and connect to your employees

Healthcare leadership isn’t about grand statements.

Mills’ actions prove that making time to listen and connect builds camaraderie and morale. 

Employees want to feel heard, respected, and valued. 

For healthcare teams, feeling seen and valued is indispensable.

“In times of crisis, leadership demands not just visibility, but honesty,” Mills said while reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic. 

For him, the pandemic highlighted the crucial importance of ongoing, transparent communication. 

Employees and teams were hungry for real-time updates, and Mills delivered. 

“The biggest difference right now is communicating with our team,” Mills reflected. “During COVID, people wanted to know what was going on. My communication to our team happened far more frequently than it did before.”

For example, weekly meetings and frequent updates allowed for open dialogue. He led with vulnerability, sharing his own experiences navigating COVID-19, including contracting the virus early on. By sharing his story with employees, Mills reinforced an environment where honesty was not only encouraged but expected.

Transparency, he argues, also extends to patients. 

Community Health Network prioritizes addressing patient complaints and concerns promptly, aiming to respond to all queries within 48 hours. 

“It’s not just about solving problems quickly,” Mills noted. “It’s about truly listening and showing patients and families that they’re respected and cared for.”

Takeaway: Building bridges with communication

Transparent communication builds trust on multiple fronts—from employees who need clear guidance during uncertainty to patients hoping to feel informed and empowered about their own care. 

Healthcare leaders can strengthen their culture by making sure transparency is a two-way street. This means informing employees while also inviting feedback and input from across all tiers of the organization.

“People want to share experiences, good or bad,” Mills observed. “But we want those experiences to be good, and that starts with people feeling known.” This captures the philosophy driving patient experience (PX) at Community Health Network.

For Mills, “patient experience” isn’t just another corporate goal. 

He instead frames it as an opportunity to build trust through authentic interactions that mirror the type of service patients expect in any industry. 

“People have preferences in what they like. We have to meet people where they are and show them we know them,” he said.

“To me, [an experience is] something I did, or I did with someone, and I want to share it,” Mills said. 

After all, healthcare doesn’t exist in a vacuum. 

Patients share their stories with neighbors, post updates on social media, and turn simple medical appointments into shared family narratives. Recognizing and amplifying these touchpoints can transform patient interactions from routine to truly meaningful.

“You can’t create a different standard of experience just because this is healthcare. People expect and deserve the same ease, recognition, and respect they’d get anywhere else,” he said.

Community Health Network embeds this philosophy into its practices by leveraging feedback and data to better know and serve each patient. 

Mills emphasizes the importance of using information to make patients feel understood and valued. 

Takeaway: PX beyond buzzwords

Healthcare professionals should view Mills’ approach as a reminder not to overcomplicate patient experience. 

It’s about humanizing every interaction, whether by improving digital convenience or fostering personal connections in care settings. 

Leaders who focus on relationships—not just protocols or metrics—can better align their organizations with modern consumer expectations.

One way Community Health Network supports employees is by simplifying their own access to healthcare. 

“If you and your family are part of our team, we guarantee you access to the care you need. This isn’t insurance. It’s a benefit of working here,” Mills explained. Offering such support ensures employees feel cared for and creates a culture where they can focus on delivering great patient care.

“I tell them, ‘You’re a caregiver, whether you’re delivering patient care directly or supporting care in other ways. Your work is vital,” he shared. Rooting the workforce in a collective mission helps solidify resilience during challenging times.

Mills’ philosophy is clear. 

“People want to feel wanted. They want to belong. They want coworkers. They want to be respected,” he says. This genuine compassion for his staff transforms the organizational culture and helps combat burnout, which has plagued the industry since the onset of COVID-19.

Takeaway: Take care of your workforce with employee programs

Healthcare organizations should focus on strategies to mitigate employee turnover. 

For example, small gestures, like open communication or recognition programs, can have a positive impact on employee morale. 

Also, provide tangible benefits that show you care about the employees like access to healthcare or flexible schedules.

For leaders, the key is staying adaptable. Mills doesn’t focus on rigid three-year strategies. Instead, he takes a more dynamic, day-to-day approach. 

“What do you need from me today? What do you need from me tomorrow?” This grounding in the present promotes resilience and ensures strategies remain flexible to meet changing demands.

Mills understands that maintaining strong ties with employees, caregivers, patients, and the community is the foundation for long-term success. Through candid communication, outreach, and transparency, he reinforces trust in Community Health Network’s brand and lays a blueprint for healthcare leadership.

4 actionable insights for healthcare leaders

Healthcare professionals at every level can take inspiration from Bryan Mills’ example.

1. Be present: Take the time to connect personally with staff and patients. Accessibility fosters trust and improves morale.
2. Communicate transparently: Be a consistent, honest voice for your team, especially in uncertain times.
3. Empower teams: Respect and empower your workforce by meeting their needs, from recognition to healthcare benefits.
4. Humanize PX: Focus on patient experience as a shared narrative and find ways to personalize care using data and empathy.

By following this path, organizations can build resilience, enhance care delivery, and ultimately create positive, lasting change for both their teams and patients.

Together, these efforts can lead to a brighter future for healthcare, a field built by and for people who serve others.

It’s about showing up for people, every single day.

If healthcare is ultimately about people serving people, then it’s time for every leader to embody that mission in their approach. The future of healthcare depends on it.