“A sense of belonging is what tethers us to those who share in our spaces that work with us. Belonging is fueled by a social connection, which is one of our basic human needs. When you feel safe, supported, and valued, you bring your full, authentic self to work and you’re fully engaged to work collaboratively to deliver the best patient care and quite frankly, be the best teammate ever,” Kecia Boyd, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, AOCNS ®, BMTCN®, director of inclusion, diversity, and equity in the department of nursing and patient care services at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, MA, told Jaime Weimer, MSN, RN, AGCNS-BS, AOCNS®, manager of oncology nursing practice at ONS, during a discussion about how nurses can contribute to a community of belonging in their workplace.   You can earn free NCPD contact hours after listening to this episode and completing the evaluation linked below.   Music Credit: “Fireflies and Stardust” by Kevin MacLeod  Licensed under Creative Commons by Attribution 3.0  Earn 0.5 contact hours of nursing continuing professional development (NCPD), which may be applied to the professional practice and performance ILNA categories, by listening to the full recording and completing an evaluation at myoutcomes.ons.org by December 22, 2025. The planners and faculty for this episode have no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. ONS is accredited as a provider of NCPD by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.  Learning outcome: The learner will report an increase in knowledge related to inclusion in nursing.  Episode Notes  Complete this evaluation for free NCPD.  Oncology Nursing Podcast: Episode 178: Together, We Can Stop Racism and Create Equity in Nursing  ONS Voice articles:  Diversity in Nursing: How the Profession Is Addressing Racial and Gender Gaps Diversity in Nursing Begins at the Student Level Achieving Diversity and Inclusion in Nursing Requires a Closer Look at the Profession’s Structure  Additional ONS resources: DEI Commitment Statement Implicit Bias Huddle Card Introduction to Intentional Conversations Videos  Harvard Implicit Association Test  The Journal of Excellence in Nursing Leadership article: Equity, diversity, and inclusion: Intersection with quality improvement  National Library of Medicine article: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Nursing: The Pathway to Excellence Framework Alignment  American Nurses Association (ANA): Promoting Diversity in Nursing and the Role of Leaders  To discuss the information in this episode with other oncology nurses, visit the ONS Communities.   To find resources for creating an ONS Podcast Club in your chapter or nursing community, visit the ONS Podcast Library.  To provide feedback or otherwise reach ONS about the podcast, email pubONSVoice@ons.org.  Highlights From Today’s Episode  “For better understanding how belonging is tied into diversity, inclusion, equity, let’s put in the context of a party. So, let’s say diversity is being invited to that party, equity is receiving the invitation to the party in the way that is right for you, inclusion is being asked to dance when you get to that party, and a sense of belonging is dancing like nobody is watching.” TS 3:43  “A strong sense of belonging is important for nurses because it will help create and sustain a healthy work environment that fosters excellence in patient care and optimal outcomes for us—as staff, as nurses—our patients, and other members of the healthcare team.” TS 4:47  “Building relationships at work is how we build resilience to our everyday work environment.  Resilience allows us to overcome those stressful situations and to adapt positively resulting in good wellbeing and mental health.” TS 6:01  “I believe it begins with each of us as individuals to do some self-reflecting or some self-awareness, because a self-reflection will allow us t