Dr. Golda Manalili has 20-years of experience in nursing practice, academia, and nursing management. Dr. Manalili is the Executive Director over the General Medicine services at University Health, which is a Magnet, level 1 trauma and teaching facility in San Antonio, Texas.

The positive outcomes that she has produced with regard to quality, safety, patient experience, and staff satisfaction attest to her excellent leadership skills. She is committed to the principles of patient safety and quality while adhering to budgetary requirements and allocations. She effectively and efficiently manages her resources to achieve the goals of her departments, which she expertly aligns with the overall organizational goals. Her sustainable and scalable outcomes have led her units towards the Achieving Zero for hospital-associated infections, improved staff engagement and patient satisfaction, and achieving the AACN’s Beacon Award of Excellence and AMSN’s PRISM award.

Dr. Manalili is the immediate past-president of the Philippine Nurses Association of San Antonio, Inc. (PNASA). Currently she serves as chair of the nomination committee of PNASA, chief executive officer of AMSN San Antonio Chapter, and the communication and social media committee chair of the South Central Texas Organization for Nursing Leadership (SCTONL). Her involvement in professional nursing organizations paved her way in conducting and spearheading various community outreach activities, which earned her multiple clinical, leadership, community service, and scholarship awards and recognitions. She completed her Master of Science degree in Nursing from Norwich University, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from Grand Canyon University. She holds a board certification in Medical-Surgical nursing. Her advanced degrees and national certification demonstrate her commitment to personal and professional development. She has mentored young nurse leaders and served as a preceptor to a number of BSN and MSN students.

Arlyn has been a registered nurse with over 25 years of experience in various areas. She migrated from the Philippines in 2007, with a background working in Dermatology, the Medical-Surgical Unit, and the Emergency Department. She transitioned to working in Dialysis, Orthopedics, Stroke Unit, Telemetry, and Pediatrics but has always returned to the Medical-Surgical area. In 2020, she received her CMSRN and Master of Science in Nursing, with an emphasis on Education in 2023, where she was inducted into the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.

She has always engaged in process improvement and professional development activities during her nursing journey. She was a recipient of the Daisy Award and actively involved in a team that led a facility to become chest pain center accredited. She organized many nursing educational opportunities at their institution, such as the Nursing Grand Rounds and a week-long COPD Series.

Arlyn facilitated certification review classes where she collaborated with certified nurse mentors who shared their experiences and knowledge and increased the number of certified nurses. She also organizes their facility’s Certified Nurses Day, where almost 100 nurses were recognized for their commitment to excellence and certification achievement. Additionally, she brings awareness about certification using the Unit-Based Council platform, one-on-one conversations, and presenting at their High-Reliability Organization Safety meetings. Arlyn highlights certified nurses by updating the certified nurses wall, where pictures and credentials of certified nurses are displayed.

She currently serves as one of the Co-Chairs of the Nursing Education and Professional Development Council and COPD CARE Implementation Co-Lead at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (FHCC) VA North Chicago. In 2022, she implemented a facility-wide inter-professional COPD program, together with a Co-Lead that decreased the rehospitalization rate from 21% to 5% in FHCC using Evidence-Based Practice.

Arlyn has always enjoyed direct patient care. However, her passion for supporting and helping nurses succeed in their careers inspired her to step into roles that impact patients and nurses at a larger scale while working at the bedside. She aspires to model advocacy from the bedside and inspire nurses to take on collateral activities that will help them grow professionally and make an impact in patient care.