American Association of Critical-Care Nurses recognizes 16 hospital units nationwide with Beacon Award for Excellence
Beacon Award for Excellence lauds top U.S.-based hospital units that employ evidence-based practices to improve patient, family outcomes and align those practices with AACN’s six Healthy Work Environment Standards
ALISO VIEJO, Calif. – June 29, 2011 – The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) recognizes 16 units from 15 hospitals nationwide that earned the Beacon Award for Excellence between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011.
The Beacon Award for Excellence lauds U.S.-based hospital units that employ evidence-based practices to improve patient and family outcomes. Units that receive the award demonstrate practices that align with AACN’s Healthy Work Environment Standards for optimal care.
The Beacon Award provides Gold, Silver and Bronze levels of recognition to hospital units that exemplify excellence in professional practice, patient care and outcomes. Recognition continues for three years before units must reapply.
Units that meet the criteria in the five categories for the Beacon Award for Excellence also meet national criteria consistent with Magnet Recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and National Quality Healthcare Award.
Recipients of a Gold Beacon Award demonstrate excellence in sustained unit performance and patient outcomes. Between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2011, two units — the surgical cardiothoracic ICU, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick, N.J.; and medical ICU, South Jersey Hospital Regional Medical Center, Vineland — achieved this top honor.
Silver-level recipients demonstrate continuous learning and effective systems to achieve optimal patient care. Bronze-level awardees demonstrate success in developing, deploying and integrating unit-based performance criteria for optimal outcomes.
The 16 units (listed by state) are:
California:
Cardiovascular Unit, Fresno Heart and Surgical Hospital (Silver)
5-ICU, Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla (Silver)
Pediatric ICU, Children’s Hospital, Los Angeles (Silver)
Illinois:
Medical Intensive Cardiac Care Unit, Advocate Christ Medical Center, Oak Lawn (Silver)
Michigan:
*SICU/RRT, University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor (Silver)
Massachusetts:
Adult Medical Surgical Trauma ICU, Baystate Medical Center, Springfield (Silver)
New Jersey:
Surgical Cardiothoracic ICU, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, New Brunswick (Gold)
Medical ICU, South Jersey Hospital Regional Medical Center, Vineland (Gold)
New York:
*Medical ICU, St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, Syracuse (Silver)
*Surgical ICU, St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center, Syracuse (Silver)
Pennsylvania:
Heart and Vascular ICU, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (Silver)
Oregon:
Intermediate Care Unit, St. Charles Health System, Bend (Bronze)
ICU, Salem Hospital (Silver)
Virginia:
Coronary Care Unit, University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville (Bronze)
Telemetry Step Down Unit, Inova Loudoun Hospital, Leesburg (Silver)
Medicine Telemetry/Progressive ICU, Virginia Commonwealth University Health System, Richmond (Silver)
AACN President Kristine Peterson, RN, MS, CCRN, CCNS, praises the exemplary efforts of the unit caregivers who achieved the Beacon Award for Excellence. She says they serve as shining role models to others seeking to provide the best in patient care.
“The Beacon Award for Excellence signifies a milestone on our journey toward exceptional patient and family care. Caregivers from these units join an elite community of healthcare professionals who work together to achieve evidence-based excellence in recruitment, retention, training and mentoring,” she explains.
AACN honors units that earn the Beacon Award for Excellence in AACN Bold Voices, its monthly award-winning member magazine distributed to more than 90,000 acute and critical care nurses nationwide, at www.aacn.org/beacon and at the National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI), the world’s largest educational conference and trade show for nurses who care for acutely and critically ill patients and their families. The next NTI takes place in Orlando, Fla., Saturday, May 19 through Thursday, May 24, 2012.
* Recipient of Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence (previous program)
About the Beacon Award for Excellence: Established in 2003, AACN’s award recognizes top U.S. hospital units that meet standards of excellence in recruitment and retention; education, training and mentoring; research and evidence-based practice; patient outcomes; leadership and organizational ethics; and creation of a healthy work environment. Award criteria — which measure systems, outcomes and environments against evidence-based national criteria for excellence — provide a mechanism to initiate patient safety efforts. To learn more about the award, visit www.aacn.org/beacon or call (800) 899-2226.
About the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses: Founded in 1969 and based in Aliso Viejo, Calif., the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is the largest specialty nursing organization in the world. AACN joins together the interests of more than 500,000 acute and critical care nurses and claims more than 235 chapters worldwide. The organization’s vision is to create a healthcare system driven by the needs of patients and their families in which acute and critical care nurses make their optimal contribution. To learn more about AACN, visit www.aacn.org, connect with the organization on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aacnface or follow AACN on Twitter at www.twitter.com/aacnme.
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, 101 Columbia, Aliso Viejo, Calif. 92656-4109;
Phone: (949) 362-2000; Fax: (949) 362-2020; www.aacn.org.
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Contact:
Sherree Geyer
AACN Communications
(949) 268-7573
sherree.geyer@aacn.org
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