HJAR Mar/Apr 2020

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS I MAR / APR 2020 21 concerns or issues that they may have re- garding safety or quality every day without fear of retaliation. Each nursing unit has a quality board to track their nursing quality metrics in real time. Green At Washington Regional, our mis- sion is to improve the health of people in the communities we serve through com- passionate, high-quality care, prevention, and wellness education. We pursue quality throughout the nursing system in our orga- nization through clear communication of a strategic focus on quality improvement, as well as departmental level goals that align with that strategic focus. Performance im- provement is correlated with our Six Pillars of Excellence, providing the nursing staff with a framework for understanding these improvement efforts. We also have a specific Shine the Light on Safety campaign, where staff can easily report employee safety risks and best practices, thus promoting a safe culture. As a nursing team, we work collab- oratively with essential stakeholders across the organization to continue our efforts in improving patient outcomes. I am truly blessed to work with such highly skilled individuals, who are committed to quality care. Our team represents the best of the best, in one of the most difficult industries that exists. Hickman Our mission, vision, and values include safety and quality of care to our patients. Our nursing vision is, “Embracing Nursing Excellence – One Patient at a Time!” We recently initiated a culture of safety cam- paign in 2019 that included education on all of our quality assessment/performance improvement teams, with educational dis- plays over two days to highlight our results in these areas. We had over 600 employees participate in these educational sessions. We also reward our staff when they have made a good catch in error prevention or harm reduction. We conduct root cause analysis throughout the year to ensure we thorough- ly review systems, processes, and people in the patient care areas. Our leaders model this type of safety culture and expectation as we make rounds, conduct meetings, and submit reports to various committees. Ray At UAMS, nurses participate in in- ter-professional teams on a variety of performance and quality initiatives to con- tinuously improve patient care outcomes. Frompatient-focused research to evaluating new products, nurses provide an invaluable perspective in the pursuit of quality. Annu- ally, frontline nurses apply for an incentive program to participate in organization-wide projects designed to improve quality, safety, and cost efficiency. This program provides quality improvement education and oppor- tunities to collaborate with other disciplines across UAMS. As we continue to reach for the standards required of Magnet designa- tion, the partnerships around quality im- provement have never been more impor- tant. Nurses are truly the key to advancing health care and improving patient care. Williams I ampassionate about nursing care and about helping to create an environment that allows nurses to excel. Nurses desire to be excellent and provide high quality care. As a nurse leader, I just have to help our nurses be aware of the latest evidence on how to improve, and to get them the tools and resources they need to meet their in- ternal desire for achieving high quality out- comes. n “More than ever, nurses are claiming the profession as their own. While expanding far beyond the traditional role to bring nursing insight to areas such as IT, teaching, telehealth, informatics, employee health, and consulting, nursing remains at the heart of health care.” – TRENDA RAY, PH.D., RN ”