Katie Boston-Leary has dedicated her career to changing institutions for the better. As the Director of Nursing Programs at the American Nurses Association (ANA), she oversees the Nursing Practice and Work Environment Division and Healthy Nurse Healthy Nation™. The ANA is the oldest and largest professional organization representing nurses in the United States and establishes standards for the practice of the profession.

At the ANA, Dr. Boston-Leary leads a team of policy advisors in building and establishing policy initiatives to empower nurses. Of note, Dr. Boston-Leary served on staff during the creation of ANA’s reckoning statement to address structural racism and acknowledge its actions in perpetuating it. Dr. Boston-Leary is passionate about helping rectify ANA’s past by creating change from within. She also led the $2.75M CDC federal grant for Project Firstline, which educates nurses to improve their knowledge of infection prevention and control. In 2019, HealthLeaders Media honored Dr. Boston-Leary as one of “5 Chief Nursing Officers Who Are Changing Healthcare.”

A registered nurse for 30 years, Dr. Boston-Leary is specialized and certified in Perioperative Nursing, Nursing Administration, and Executive Leadership. She is an industry thought leader with numerous publications, keynotes, interviews, and speaking engagements throughout the United States. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland School of Nursing and Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University and serves on numerous boards.

Dr. Boston-Leary has earned a Doctor of Philosophy from Walden University and completed the Global Nurse Leadership Institute in 2023. Dr. Boston-Leary emphasizes that we must look beyond interpersonal conflicts and examine the structures in healthcare that are perpetrating racist behaviors and use that as the catalyst to begin a dialogue for change.