2023 Most Influential Women: Jennifer Murray

Jennifer Murray discovered her calling in high school.

“I knew that I was meant to work with people who needed help, especially children,” she says.

This epiphany hit when the small-town Missouri girl who visited nursing homes as a Girl Scout volunteered at a summer camp for children and adults with disabilities. A medical career beckoned.

Murray began working as a licensed practical nurse before becoming a registered nurse and then earning her master’s degree in nursing in 2018. She’s spent most of her career at Mercy Hospital Springfield.

Murray worked in the neonatal intensive care unit for several years before 2011, when she was promoted to nurse manager for the NICU and newborn nursery, with more than 110 direct reports. She also took on the responsibility of completing the build of Mercy’s 46-bed Level III NICU capable of handling premature and critically ill infants.

“This was all taking place when we were seeing record volumes in our unit,” Murray says. “With this build came the beginning of my time working with our Mercy Health Foundation and learning more about philanthropy. Through this partnership, I was able to meet many community leaders and individuals who had an interest in helping our hospital provide exceptional care to tiny babies. Together, we secured over $20 million in generous donations for our build.”

In 2017, Murray became the director of nursing for women’s and children’s services, a role with more than 450 co-workers and seven managers across 13 departments.

“I knew going into this role that there were many things that needed to change,” she says. “I led the team through collaboration and thinking differently about how we operate.”

Murray’s efforts helped decrease staff turnover and saved more than $1 million annually by reducing excess patient days in the NICU. She was also involved in helping to raise funds for Mercy’s pediatric emergency room, which opened in 2021.

That same year, she became the executive director for women’s and children’s services and this year added behavioral health nursing to her responsibilities.

Murray is grateful to those who saw leadership in her when she didn’t see it in herself, and she enjoys returning the favor.

“As I have continued to move forward in my career, I have always … tried to pay it forward to others in a similar spot where I was,” she says.

Murray takes her commitment to advocate for women and children outside of work. Some of the organizations she serves include Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Ozarks Inc., Missouri Breastfeeding Coalition and Community Partnership of the Ozarks Inc.’s Child Abuse and Neglect Collaborative.

“This volunteer work and giving to others has truly enriched my soul,” she says. “Being able to give back to those in need and contribute when I am so blessed is the biggest reward I could hope for. I believe my calling is to give back for the right reasons, with the right heart, and to truly be of service to others.”

That purpose Murray felt in high school remains: “I can think of no better calling than to spend my life in this work.”