University Hospitals receives a $2.3 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation

CLEVELAND, Ohio – University Hospitals has received a $2.3 million grant from the John Templeton Foundation in support of a project to expand and spread the groundbreaking ‘Living and Leading with Love’ framework within the UH health system and beyond.

The UH Veale Healthcare Transformation Institute will oversee this effort, under the leadership of Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, UH Chief Quality and Clinical Transformation Officer and Veale Distinguished Chair in Leadership and Clinical Transformation, and Patrick Runnels, MD, MBA, Chief Medical Officer, Veale Healthcare Transformation Institute and Population Health, as well as Ann S. and Anthony J. Asher Chair in Community Health.

At a time when over half of healthcare workers report moral distress and burnout, UH is pioneering a model that places love (defined as unconditional regard, shared accountability, and respect) at the center of leadership and organizational culture.

The “Living and Leading with Love” framework is a new approach designed to address the difficulties staff report about working in healthcare while improving care outcomes, and strengthening trust between patients, providers, and health systems.

“True transformation in the healthcare industry requires more than new technology or care models. It requires us rethinking how we lead our teams, how we treat our colleagues, and how we connect to our patients,” said Dr. Pronovost. “Living and Leading with Love framework is operationalizing love through humility, compassion, and accountability. The model sees all people as innately worthy and capable, thus ensuring everyone can contribute to create the best possible outcome.”

The “Living and Leading with Love” framework has already demonstrated impact at UH, ranking UH among the top performers in the Medicare shared savings program.

Through the new grant, UH will:

• Expand training through a Transformational Leadership Academy, equipping leaders to create cultures of belonging and psychological safety.
• Develop practical tools including a leadership toolkit and AI-driven training simulations to support adoption of the model.
• Share nationally and globally via conferences, publications, and educational programs.

“This grant allows us to deepen our work and share it with health systems across the country and around the world,” said Dr. Runnels. “At its core, Living and Leading with Love is valuing every person, enabling safe and meaningful contribution, and fostering transparency. This framework shifts leadership from assigning blame to sharing accountability and support. We believe this philosophy is the missing ingredient for solving healthcare’s biggest challenges.”

UH will host the first national conference on healthcare transformation in September 2025, bringing together leaders from across the country to explore how love-driven leadership can accelerate value-based care and improve patient outcomes.

Because of You: The Campaign for University Hospitals is a $2 billion fundraising effort to advance the UH mission. This generous grant support from the Templeton Foundation is part of the most ambitious campaign in UH’s history and will advance the care of patients in every corner of our community and beyond.