Nursing

Inside best practice: Involve nurses in budget development

HCPro's Weekly Update on the ANCC Magnet Recognition Program®*, February 24, 2009

Under Component III: Exemplary professional practice in the 2008 ANCC Magnet Recognition Program® (MRP) Application Manual, applicants are expected to involve nurses in budget development. Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-St. Joseph in Milwaukee, WI—a 2008 MRP recipient—meets this expectation in the following way:

The purpose of the St. Joseph’s Shared Governance Operations Council is to provide the human and material resources needed for each nursing unit. The council involves direct-care nurses in the unit budget by asking nurses what resources are needed to conduct their job effectively. This includes making requests for needed equipment, and reviewing and evaluating staffing patterns and requests for educational time.

From here, the staff nurses’ requests are reviewed by the director and patient care supervisor to assist in prioritizing the needs for operating and capital budget planning. Part of budget planning and development is the dissemination of information related to departmental budgets and overall organizational finances. This information is shared through staff and leadership meetings. 

Source: Dawn Murphy, BBA, RN, MRP coordinator at Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-St. Joseph.

Editor’s note: Do you have a best practice you would like to share? E-mail them to associate editor Cameran Erny at cerny@hcpro.com and see your name in print!

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