In this episode, Harry and DJ talk with Dr. Sheila Davis about her experiences in leading through crisis. She shares her heart for people, and why she feels it is important to be an agent of change. One of the things that stands out is how she leads with transparency and is not afraid to be human. There are a lot of leadership lessons in this one.

From nurse to CEO of Partners in Health. Dr. Davis holds a doctorate in nursing and has a long history of serving the poor and marginalized—working closely with patients suffering from HIV in the 1980s, both in the U.S. and abroad. For the past decade, she has held multiple cross-site roles at Partners In Health. After joining the organization in 2010, Dr. Davis was instrumental in the planning and opening of Hôpital Universitaire de Mirebalais, a 300-bed teaching hospital in Haiti.

When PIH entered West Africa to help address the Ebola epidemic, Dr. Davis, then Chief Nursing Officer and a member of the executive leadership team, led the organization’s Ebola response. Later, she took on the additional role of Chief of Clinical Operations. Wearing both hats, Dr. Davis has married her activism, pragmatism, and implementation skills to elevate Partners In Health’s nursing programs and all of the clinical operations, firmly establish the organization’s nursing strategy, and heighten the professionalism and inclusiveness of the organization’s thousands of nurses, midwives, and community health workers.