For more than half a century, Linda Burnes Bolton, DrPH, RN, FAAN, elevated the role of nursing at Cedars-Sinai and across the country—inspiring a generation of nurses while shaping healthcare policy and advocating for greater equity among the ranks of medical professionals—all with the goal of improving care for patients.
The distinguished nursing leader, who guided Cedars-Sinai’s Department of Nursing to national distinction, died at her home in Los Angeles on Jan. 11. She was 76.
“Linda Burnes Bolton’s extraordinary leadership and vision made significant contributions to advancing healthcare and the nursing profession, not only at Cedars-Sinai, but across the nation,” said Thomas M. Priselac, president and CEO emeritus, whose career as president and CEO before retiring last year spanned much of Burnes Bolton’s career.
“She was also a true friend,” Priselac added. “I am personally grateful to have worked alongside her and to have witnessed her many contributions, her strong leadership and her voice in advocating for health equity.”
Burnes Bolton — affectionately known as LBB by her colleagues — started her Cedars-Sinai career as a staff nurse in Labor and Delivery in 1971. She became the first advanced practice nurse at Cedars-Sinai, one of her first big steps toward dramatically shifting the nursing culture at the hospital and beyond.
“I never had the privilege of meeting Dr. Burnes Bolton, but I know her extraordinary legacy is woven into the very fabric of Cedars-Sinai and will continue to shape its history for generations to come,” said Peter L. Slavin, MD, current president and CEO of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Cedars-Sinai Health System.
Burnes Bolton held numerous leadership positions during her long and distinguished career at Cedars-Sinai, including chief nursing officer, senior vice president and chief health equity officer, and held the inaugural James R. Klinenberg, MD, and Lynn Klinenberg-Linkin Chair in Nursing. She led Cedars-Sinai through its first five Magnet designations, a distinction granted by the American Nurses Credentialing Center to recognize nursing excellence.
Burnes Bolton grew up in Tucson, Arizona, the oldest of 12 children. She cited her mother as the guiding influence in her life—starting in childhood, she learned crucial lessons about the values of generosity and advocacy.
“I have always given to others. That’s who I am,” she said in a 2015 interview with American Nurses Foundation. The amount is not what’s important. It’s the gift, the expression of love and caring: What drives me is the need to feel that people know they are loved and cared about.”
Burnes Bolton decided she wanted to be a nurse when she was six, inspired by those who cared for her when she was frequently hospitalized for severe asthma. She earned an undergraduate degree in nursing from Arizona State University and three graduate degrees from UCLA: master’s degrees in nursing and public health and a doctorate in public health.
While working with the Black Nurses Association, she helped to develop a community collaboration model that linked physicians and nurses in professional societies with neighborhood businesses and organizations. The model was adopted by more than 100 communities nationwide.
“The essence of nursing is human caring, and that essence drives me every day,” she said in a 2014 American Organization for Nursing Leadership address. “I see it as a gift to the world that nurses give and why we continue to be the most trusted profession in the United States.”
Burnes Bolton advocated for policy changes that would allow nurses to practice at the top of their license—meaning they should be empowered to provide care to the full extent of their education, training, and abilities. She advocated for laws and regulations that would allow nurses more autonomy to care for patients and for nurses to be seen as important partners in care.
During her tenure, Burnes Bolton oversaw creation of the Geri and Richard Brawerman Nursing Institute, which provides opportunities for nursing education, professional development and research. Cedars-Sinai hosted its first nursing research conference in 1994 with just five abstracts. The research enterprise has grown exponentially. In 2020, at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference continued with 81 abstracts to share.
Burnes Bolton served in many national leadership positions, including as president of the American Academy of Nursing, the American Organization of Nurse Executives (now known as the American Organization for Nursing Leadership) and the National Black Nurses Association.
Burnes Bolton was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2015. She also served on the editorial board of the American Journal of Nursing.
Among her many accolades, she received the American Academy of Nursing 2022 Lifetime Legacy Award and the American Organization for Nursing Leadership Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007 and was included in Modern Healthcare’s Top 25 Women in Healthcare in 2011. In 2016, she was named a Living Legend by the American Academy of Nursing.
“It is my hope that everyone sees nursing as the profession that is committed to equity in human caring,” she said during a 2021 Future of Nursing Initiative “fireside chat” video interview.
“We must have excellence in human caring and have all professions strive for equity. That would be a mechanism for us to truly get to a healthier world where all human beings have the equal right to get healthy and stay healthy.”
