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Ask the expert: Defining tasks for the staff advisory committee

HCPro's Weekly Update on the ANCC Magnet Recognition Program®*, March 25, 2008

This week, a reader asks what tasks the staff advisory committee should focus on. Read the response from our advisor Barbara Hannon, RN, MSN, CPHQ, coordinator for the ANCC Magnet Recognition Program® at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, IA.

Q: What tasks should the staff advisory committee focus on?

A: When a council is run only by staff nurses, the nurses need a clear purpose and mission or they will lose focus. Your shared governance bylaws should indicate this mission and vision for the staff advisory committee. At the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC), we have a staff nurse council (nursing staff members only) who meet every month with a set agenda, minutes, and action plan. The staff nurse council advises the operational councils and provides suggestions for improving nurse satisfaction and often the council brings in speakers to discuss various topics. For example, I have spoken on older nurses, intergenerational workforce issues, and the Magnet Recognition Program®.

A staff advisory council can also review the nursing staff policy, staffing plans, nurse-sensitive quality indicators, and patient outcomes. The following are a few job descriptions that have come from the mission and vision of the staff nurse council at UHIC:

• Coordinating Nurses Week activities
• Planning bus trips for nurses to nearby places of interest
• Coordinating speakers to discuss important issues at nursing functions
• Planning recognition ceremonies for staff nurses who have achieved certification
• Holding fund-raising activities at the hospital and around the community

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