October 23, 2017: I’d like to share feedback from three of our nurses who attended the 2017 Magnet conference last week at the George R Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.
Shermel Edwards: Bringing it to the bedside – Nursing led savings presented by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). This session highlighted the importance of choosing the right supplies for the right patient at the right time.
Ways to save: Standardize and analyze products/service, eliminate waste, uncover unnecessary waste, remove non-value added features
Examples of how they saved: The ER would put a disposable pulse oximeter on every child that came through the ER, priced at $10/per pulse oximeter. If admitted, the pulse oximeter would go upstairs with the patient and be thrown away. They realized this waste by doing a “walk thru” and decided to purchase clip pulse oximeters to use which costs only $50 but are reusable. The hospital saved over $500,000 in costs associated with this change.
How they did this: They bridged the gaps between the “suits” and the “scrubs”. They worked on this project through shared governance councils. They also shared costs of supplies with nursing staff. If staff know how much items cost they may be less likely to waste them.
Where can we save:
- SCD’s
- Blood pressure cuffs
- Oral swabs
- Isolation stethoscopes
- Disposable pulse oximeters
- Gloves in central line kits that aren’t used
- Walk thru unit to see what is being wasted, create a process map and identify areas of improvement
Elizabeth Emanuel: The question was asked “what did you learn at this Magnet® conference?” It’s difficult to pick one thing as I received an incredible amount of information! One thing I learned that has changed my thinking is the idea of “Mindfulness”. Mindfulness is being aware of each moment and focusing on one thing at a time. As nurses and health care providers we assume that we have to do everything and think of everything all at once. We don’t have to do this. We can give ourselves permission to think of things one at a time. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to enhance my knowledge and use it to be a better nurse and more importantly a better person!
Luz Malit: The session on “Are you a High-Performing Leader According to Magnet Standards” brought some good insights on the 4 I’s of a good Transformational Leader which are the following:
- Idealized influence meaning leading by example.
- Intellectual stimulation meaning creative, innovation, problem solving.
- Individualized consideration meaning coaching, mentoring
- Inspirational motivation meaning promoting excitement, enthusiasm, positive energy
I also learned the difference of a BOSS and a LEADER. The BOSS says “GO” the LEADER says, “LET’s GO”
I gained insight on what the speaker said that “CULTURE is the SHADOW of the LEADER”
– Janet Leatherwood, CNO