HCPro.com: The Staff Educator

April 2008 (Volume 4, Issue 4)	view entire issue

Educators can embrace new technology to improve patient safety
With a sundry assortment of hospital technology coming to the forefront of nurse training, educators must recognize the benefits (and potential downfalls) of available tools as they make practical choices with the goal of improving patient safety. "I suspect most of you are in the midst of the explosion of information technology [IT] in your organizations," said Diane M. Billings, EdD, RN, FAAN, Chancellors' Professor Emeritus of Nursing at the Indiana University School of Nursing (IUSON) in Indianapolis, during the recent HCPro audioconference "Technology in Nursing Education: Use Today's Tools to Promote Learning and Enhance Patient Safety."

Start them on the journey from Day 1
Whether your facility has received designation from the ANCC Magnet Recognition Program® (MRP)* or is on the journey to designation, implementing the 14 Forces of Magnetism into your orientation program is one way to focus on the culture of MRP and educate new nurses starting their first day on the job. Ron Bass, MAEd, BSN, RN-BC, clinical educator at Sarasota (FL) Memorial Healthcare System, wanted to help new staff members embrace the MRP concepts from the very start and build a quality-focused nursing environment. Bass tied his hospital's tried-and-true new-hire orientation to each of the 14 Forces of Magnetism.

Raise the curtain on new training strategies
As an actor conveying emotion to a fellow thespian or a director giving a cue to a stagehand, you realize the importance of good communication when you're in theater. These techniques may be essential to an opening-night performance, but professors at a Virginia school realized their usefulness is easily translated into healthcare. "Our work in the field of medicine is based on principles and theories used to train actors," says David S. Leong, chair, professor, and producer in the theater department at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond.

Other recently-published articles from The Staff Educator:

Falls are focus of community hospital’s first EBP project

Adding oral care helps lower VAP rates

Celebrate nurses without breaking the bank

The art of nursing

Expert strategies for successful precepting

Train your learners about time management

Provide effective feedback to your nurses

Match new nurses with the right job

Cultural competence for the diverse population

Prep your nurses for Joint Commission surveyors

Step up nurse-patient interactions

Coping with challenging learners

Retaining the wisdom of the mature educator

Rewarding your gatekeepers

Project management pointers to develop staff leaders

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*MAGNET™, MAGNET RECOGNITION PROGRAM®, and ANCC MAGNET RECOGNITION® are trademarks of the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). The products and services of HCPro, Inc. and The Greeley Company are neither sponsored nor endorsed by the ANCC