A note from Sherry Perkins: Learn more about AAMC’s next CNO and prepare to show AAMC pride on our Magnet Anniversary
A letter to AAMC nursing staff from our COO/CNO, Sherry Perkins…
Dear Nursing Staff-
Next week will mark one year since AAMC was designated a Magnet® organization. Please link here for the video of our Magnet® designation phone call. What I expressed that day is evident in every shift, every day, every unit. We are Magnet designated due to your caring and knowledgeable nursing presence. A second comment on Magnet – we don’t do our work, our Anne Arundel nursing care, for Magnet. Our goal always has been to do what’s best for patients and the people who take care of patients. As it turns out – that also makes us Magnet designated!
Our second tremendous marker this month will be the arrival 9/28/15 of our next AAMC Chief Nursing Officer, Barbara Jacobs, MSN, RN. Barbara is a caring, smart, experienced, results-oriented leader. She also is paid one of our profession’s highest compliments – “Barbara is a nurse’s nurse.” Barbara most recently served as Chief Nursing Officer at Johns Hopkins Suburban Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland. She grew as a nurse and nurse leader in 18 years of service at George Washington University Hospital. With deep and diverse clinical and leadership experiences, Barbara also is certified in gerontological and critical care nursing.
Thanks to you for your leadership, knowledge, and caring that made AAMC and Barbara such a great match. Serving as the AAMC CNO has been a major honor of my professional life and I’m thrilled for this handoff to Barbara. We will build in many ways for you to get to know Barbara.
On to the work! Barbara will work with nursing staff and nurse leaders, council leaders, and physician and multidisciplinary teammates. This will include building on current performance and driving improvements in:
- CAUTI, CLABSI, Falls, HAPU, specialty nurse sensitive indicators, core measures, and clinical variation
- Patient Satisfaction
- Wellbeing and the RN and nursing team work environment
Barbara also will lead the team in refinement and implementation of our next Nursing Strategic Plan that serves AAMC’s Vision 2020. In June 2015, with input from all levels of nursing staff, we identified additional areas of focus: 1) structures to support our Advanced Practice nurses, 2) structures to support community wide patient education, and 3) improved care coordination, continuity of care, and attention to health equity. (By the way, we know and hear clearly from you that it all starts with adequate staffing and resources to accomplish the goals.) Among other work, Barbara will build nursing strength in our development of cardiac surgery, inpatient psychiatry, and graduate medical education. Expect a full plan update in the Spring of 2016.
On a proud note, we have had many publications and presentations this last year regarding our AAMC nursing care. At the October Magnet Conference we will have three presentations: 1) AAMC’s COPE Program 2) AAMCs unique (don’t let tail wag the dog) Magnet structure, and 3) AAMC’s leadership of the statewide work on nurse residency.
So – to mark the one year celebration of our Magnet® designation, show your AAMC spirit and pride – wear your AAMC Nurses Rock t-shirts and PPM tattoos on Wednesday, September 16. You can get tattoos on your unit on the 16th (what a weird sentence that is….).
Again, my most earnest thanks to you – the always present – Anne Arundel nursing staff for what you continue to do every day. Thank you for understanding what it means for humans to be sick, old, weak and vulnerable.
Let me know what you think.
My warmest regards,
Sherry
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