For Mary Myers, there was never a doubt. Her career would be in health care. With a passion instilled in her as a child to help people, she set her sights on becoming a nurse. Myers achieved this goal after obtaining her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Villanova University, and later pursued advanced education by obtaining her master’s degree from the University of Maryland. When it came time to choose the place to start her career, Johns Hopkins was the logical choice. And she’s been here ever since…

Why did you choose Johns Hopkins after graduating?

When I became a nurse in 1981, the job market was plentiful and I had offers from many hospitals in the Maryland/Pennsylvania region. Because I had experienced what Johns Hopkins was all about from summer internships, I knew that the tripartite mission of patient care, teaching and research aligned very much with my personal goals.

What made you transition to leadership?

I originally wanted to be a nurse practitioner in pediatrics or work with the frail elderly, but somehow I naturally progressed to leadership and management. I realized that even though I loved bedside care, management allowed me the opportunity to have significant impact in changing the patient care delivery system to provide better quality and safety outcomes.

What do you remember most about your time at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center?

I loved my time at Johns Hopkins Bayview because I was able to grow so much and learn many new lines of business. One personal highlight was helping to design the critical care units in the towers at Johns Hopkins Bayview’s Francis Scott Key Pavilion. But also, I’ve had the pleasure of watching so many of my peers from my early years there grow into current leaders throughout the health system. People like Dan Smith, Charlie Reuland, Steve Kravet, Kathy DeRuggiero, Mary Margaret Jacobs, Patty Dawson and many more. I’m proud of my colleagues’ contributions, and to see the many ways they are making positive change within the health system.

You came to Johns Hopkins Home Care Group as a consultant and later a chief quality officer. Why is quality and safety and high-reliability important to you?

Quality and safety outcomes demonstrate the value of the work that we do. That’s why I really wanted to be associated with Johns Hopkins — because we really have that focus and see quality and safety as paramount. Johns Hopkins Home Care Group was striving to be a high-reliability organization before it became a heath care philosophy. We truly aim to evolve, improve and learn from our mistakes. We are very active in involving patients in our committees to consistently hear their experiences, and get their feedback guiding us towards excellence. My vision is to be the organization that people insist on using.

What do you see as your primary responsibilities as president? How do you try to accomplish them?

I think, as president, my role is to set the vision and the focus on the strategic priorities. In addition, it’s key to help to align Johns Hopkins’ home-based services with Johns Hopkins Medicine and the community in which we serve. To do this, I think it’s important to lead with transparency through two-way communication. I believe people need to understand their role and its importance in the big picture of the organization. It’s equally important to listen to their point of view and give them a chance to speak up when they think we’re getting off track and give input on how we can resolve it.

What do you see as the role and importance of home-based services within the Johns Hopkins Medicine continuum?

As we move away from a hospital centricity to more of a system of care and population health, I believe that home care is a trusted, personalized way of coordinating that care. We’re very much a part of that continuum. Our goal is to work with the patients and their loved ones to educate, monitor and enhance care in the comfort of their homes.

What are your words to live by?

“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou