1. careers
2. nursing

V. 24 • No. 20 • May 11, 2015
Queen’s Celebrates Nursing Excellence
THE 21ST ANNUAL Nursing Excellence
Awards were held at The Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu last Friday as the
culmination of Nurses Week 2015. The
awardees are as follows:
LEADERSHIP
Eileen Wong, CCRN, BSN
QET 4C SICU
Eileen was the initiator and champion of
the international DAISY Award which recognizes nurses for outstanding patient
care, and is currently spreading the recognition to QMC-West O‘ahu. She also gathered support for her unit to apply for the
Beacon Award and recently received the
Circle of Excellence Award from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses
(see stories on both awards on page 2).
Eileen is co-chair of the SICU/QET 4C
Unit Council and has fostered a fun, inclusive environment to keep staff nurses
engaged. She practices shared governance by ensuring staff is informed, gets
background, is involved in assessments,
and are able to make recommendations.
She is an active member of the RN
Retention Committee. As relief charge
nurse, Eileen is five steps ahead of staff
and stays on top of rounding. She is also
a valued opinion leader in SICU.
EDUCATION
Judie Ilano, CCRN, BSN
QET 4C SICU
Judie teaches SICU crisis skills to senior
nurses at the University of Hawai‘i at
Manoa.
¯
She is an active member of the
American Association of Critical-Care
Nursing (AACN)–Hawai‘i Chapter, participating in educational events and formerly serving as treasurer.
Eileen Wong
Judie Ilano
Jodi Ka‘alekahi
Jessica Gill
Kathie Stiner
Jill Slade
Judie is actively involved in shared governance as Unit Council co-chair and is a
driving force for the unit’s annual competence fair. She is an effective educator for
patients and families, and is sought after
for her skill at communicating in Tagalog.
RESEARCH or
EVIDENCE BASED PRACTICE
Jodi Ka‘alekahi, CCRN, AND
Endoscopy, Kamehameha 4
Jodi has reached out and worked with
R-Matrix and Imi Hale because she is
committed to expanding her research
knowledge, specifically with the Native
Hawaiian population.
As a Nurse Research Fellow, Jodi is the
principal investigator (PI) on a colonoscopy program study. She continuously seeks
higher education opportunities and has
almost completed her MS degree. Jodi’s
goal is to combine research and nursing
in her practice and to actively educate her
nurse peers on evidence-based practices.
PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT
Jessica Gill, MSN
QET 4C
Jessica created and implemented a transfer checklist project which improved communication between providers. The collected data from the project is already
(Continued on Page 2)
Nursing Excellence
(Continued from page 1.)
showing positive results. Jessica’s transfer checklist project has improved patient
outcomes and motivated others to do their
own performance improvement projects.
Jessica doesn’t hesitate to get involved
in performance measures for VAP prevention, CAUTI prevention, and CLABSI
prevention, all nursing-sensitive indicators.
Clinical Practice
Kathryn Stiner, PCCN, BSN
Charge Nurse, QET 6/3
Kathie is an all around experienced nurse
who is recognized by peers as expert in
her specialty. She is a strong proponent
of documentation and conducts regular
audits to assure that charts reflect her
organizational standards.
Kathie mentors new graduate nurses in
the principles of basic nursing care, such
as ambulation, careful I/Os, and weight
Queen’s a Beacon
of Excellence
THE QUEEN EMMA TOWER 4C-Surgical
Intensive Care Unit (QET 4C-SICU) at The
Queen’s Medical Center in Honolulu has
received the Silver-level Beacon Award
for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-care Nursing (AACN).
QMC’s Silver-level recognition signifies continuous learning and effective
systems to achieve optimal patient care.
The QET 4C SICU earned the award by
meeting rigorous criteria in the AACN’s
six Healthy Work Environment Standards
of Leadership Structures and Systems;
Appropriate Staffing and Staff Engagement; Effective Communication, Knowledge Management, Learning, and De-
for cardiac patients, gaining the respect of
peers and doctors alike. She is a falls prevention champion on QET 6/3. Her leadership has resulted in a decreased fall rate.
Eileen Wong
Given Circle of
Excellence Award
Queen Emma Nursing Leadership Award * NURSING EXCELLENCE Leadership award
Jill Slade, CCRN, BSN
winner Eileen Wong, CCRN, BSN, QET4C
Nurse Manager, QET 4 SICU
SICU, has also been recognized nation-
*Nominations are from physicians.
Jill’s mentoring goes beyond the doors
of QMC and into the community, even to
the Hilo Medical Center’s ICU, where she
helped staff with patient satisfaction and
bedside care issues. Jill was the AACN
Ambassador and coaches staff on seeking specialty licenses, such as the CCRN.
She actively mentors multiple nurse managers on various units at Queen’s.
Jill implemented a device integration
project in the SICU and has built positive
working relationships with Mihae Yu, MD,
Mona Ghows, MD, and the staff of the
SICU. She is active in multiple house-wide
initiatives, including leading: a lab specimen labeling effort with DLS to reduce
errors; education on proper blood bank
labeling; and an effort to identify gaps in
immunizations. She also led efforts to track
patients to increase safety, and was a major stakeholder on restraint reduction.
velopment; Evidence-Based Practice and
Processes; and Outcome Measurement.
The unit is the first in Hawai‘i to achieve
the three-year national distinction.
Recipients who earn the Bronze-level
award show success in developing, deploying, and integrating unit-based performance criteria for optimal outcomes, while
Gold-level awardees have demonstrated excellent sustained unit performance
and patient outcomes. “Next time, we
will achieve gold,” predicts Eileen Wong,
who spearheaded the application process. While Eileen credits the entire unit
ally by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) with a Circle
of Excellence Award. Eileen is one of 25
nurses from across the country who have
been selected based on their excellent
outcomes in the care of acute and critical
patients and their families.
A QMC nurse for the past 22 years, Eileen helped to initiate the Buddy System
for safe patient care, wherein every patient is monitored 24/7 by a primary nurse
or designated nurse buddy. The newly
achieved Beacon Award is another of
Eileen’s pet projects which all contribute
towards putting patients first at Queen’s.
In addition to her work on the international DAISY award, Eileen has championed
the nomination of other Circle of Excellence award recipients. She is the fourth
QMC nurse to receive this coveted distinction and will be formally recognized
at the AACN National Teaching Institute
& Critical Care Exposition in San Diego,
California, later this month.
Criteria used to evaluate Circle of Excellence Award candidates include relentless
promotion of patient-driven excellence;
communication skills; true collaboration;
effective decision making; meaningful
recognition of others; ability to transform thinking, structures, and processes;
and ability to address challenges and remove barriers to excellent patient care and
achieve visible results through leadership.
Awardees receive a plaque and a $1,000
honorarium, and become members of the
Circle of Excellence Society.
for achieving the award, special recognition goes to application contributors Oscar
Bautista, Joanne Weldon, Julie Sy, Judy Illano, Reanne Takara, Asa Miyahira, Suerte
Dureg, Peter Massey, and Rose Hata.
“The Beacon Award for Excellence is
a significant milestone on the path to exceptional patient care and healthy work
environments. Units that receive this national recognition serve as role models to
others on their journey to excellent patient and family care,” said AACN President Teri Lynn Kiss, RN, MSSW, CNML.
APRNs Elevate the Practice of Nursing
“ADVANCED PRACTICE Registered Nurses (APRNs) add significant value and
contributions to patient care which optimizes the entire spectrum of hospital
care,” says Martin Camacho, APRN-Rx,
ACNP-BC, ENP-BC. Advanced Practice
Registered Nurse (APRN) is a broad,
general classification with a myriad of
specialty certifications. Although it may
seem confusing, what’s truly important is
that the credentials mean these nurses
have taken the time and effort to improve
their knowledge base for the ultimate
goal of better serving the patient. APRNs
have passed national certification exams
and completed either master’s or PhD
educational requirements.
The APRN Committee at Queen’s
wants to help patients, families, and hospital staff better understand what all of
those credentials mean. “APRNs are integral to so many different facets of patient
care—especially research, education, and
evidence-based practice—that positively
affect patient outcomes,” explained Marti, who is chair of the committee.
There are currently four APRN designations. A Nurse Practitioner (NP) cares
for a variety of patients based on their
specialization. These include pediatrics,
2015
Cherylee Chang, MD, and Sanders Sandoval, APRN consult on a patient with a traumatic brain
injury using an image from a portable head CT scanner (right).
geriatrics, mental health, woman’s health
and oncology. They can take health histories and do complete physical exams;
diagnose and treat acute and chronic illnesses; provide immunizations; prescribe
and manage medications and other therapies; order and interpret lab tests and
x-rays; and provide health education and
supportive counseling.
A Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) provides advanced nursing care in hospitals or clinics. They incorporate clinical
expertise and evidence-based practice
to augment nursing care and influence
health care systems. Their expertise aids
in diagnosing, treatment, prevention, and
remediation strategies which affect the
utilization of key interventions and help
streamline medical care. They are also
key in developing quality improvement
programs and serve as mentors, educators, researchers, and consultants.
A Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA) administers anesthesia and
related care before and after surgical, therapeutic, diagnostic, and obstetrical procedures. They also administer and monitor
pain management treatment plans.
A Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) provides primary care to women of all ages,
including gynecological exams, family planning, prenatal care, management of low
risk labor and delivery, and neonatal care.
“Specializations quickly branch out,
allowing a nurse to be active in different settings and to best utilize newly emerged clinical care,” Marti adds.
“Their research provides continued support to physicians and the nursing team.”
Queen’s administration fully supports advanced practice nursing and this summer
will begin a new APRN Practice Transition
Program. The year-long program will support APRN new hires with less than three
years of experience or those with a lapse
in practice with clinical support, development, and continued education. Qualified
new hires will automatically be enrolled in
the program. For more information about
APRNs, contact Marti by email at [email protected]. For information about
the new transition support program, contact Mimi Harris at [email protected].
A RETIREMENT TEA for Sally Jones, RN,
Trauma Program Manager, will be held on
Tuesday, May 19, from 2:00 – 3:30 pm in
the Harkness Dining Room. All are invited
to say aloha and celebrate her 35 years of
service at The Queen’s Medical Center.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
THERE’S A LET’S GO PINK special offer
though the month of May to welcome
new massage therapist Sterling Coria
to the Queen’s Women’s Health Center
in Honolulu. Special prices are: 50 minute massage, $45; 25 minute massage,
$22.50; 15 minute mini massage, $8.75.
Call 691-7734 to schedule.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
JOURNEY TOGETHER: Cancer Survivorship Conference 2015, “Finding Your
Own Path,” will be held on Thursday,
June 11, from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm at
the Pomaikai Ballrooms at Dole Cannery in Iwilei. Registration, resource
fair, and continental breakfast begin
at 8:00 am. Register online at: https://
www.uhbooks.hawaii.edu/conference/
hcccc2015.asp.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
NORTH HAWAI‘I COMMUNITY HOSPITAL
(NHCH) successfully reached their goal in
their Clean Hands Are Safe Hands campaign. Staff and volunteers were rewarded with a special lunch for exceeding the
1,000-coin marker for displaying proper
hand hygiene over the past two months.
QMC Gets An A For Patient Safety
THE QUEEN’S MEDICAL CENTER has
been recognized for its dedication to patient safety with an A grade in the Spring
2015 Hospital Safety Score, which rates
how well hospitals protect patients from
preventable medical errors, injuries, and
infections within the hospital.
The A grade is considered a valuable
indicator for patients looking for a safe
place for care. The Hospital Safety Score
is compiled under the guidance of some
of the nation’s leading patient safety experts and administered by The Leapfrog
Group, a national, nonprofit hospital safety watchdog. The first and only hospital
safety rating to be peer-reviewed in the
Journal of Patient Safety, the Score is free
to the public and designed to give consumers information they can use to protect themselves and their families when
facing a hospital stay.
“The Queen’s Medical Center is proud
to receive the distinction of an A grade
hospital,” said QHS/QMC President Art
Ushijima. “We make it a priority to put
our patients first, and this grade is a tribute to our dedicated Queen’s team who
always works to provide the highest quality health care to the people of Hawai‘i.”
“The Queen’s Medical Center’s A
grade validates its achievement in preventing harm within the hospital, and
we are proud to recognize the efforts of
the care providers and staff,” said Leah
Binder, President and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, which administers the Hospital Safety Score. “Patient safety requires
constant vigilance, and we encourage
Queen’s and all other A hospitals to continue demonstrating unrelenting commitment to patients by consistently providing
a safe environment for care.”
Developed under the guidance of
Leapfrog’s Blue Ribbon Expert Panel,
the Hospital Safety Score uses 28 measures of publicly available hospital safety
data to produce a single A, B, C, D, or
F score, representing a hospital’s overall capacity to keep patients safe from
preventable harm. More than 2,500 U.S.
general hospitals were assigned scores
in April 2015, with about 31 percent receiving an A grade. The Hospital Safety
Score is fully transparent, offering a
full analysis of the data and methodology used in determining grades on the
Hospital Safety Score website. Now, for
the first time, patients can also review
their hospital’s past safety performance
alongside its current grade on the website, allowing them to determine which
local hospitals have the best track record in patient safety and which have
demonstrated consistent improvement.
To see Queen’s full score and to access consumer-friendly tips for patients
and loved ones visiting the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetyscore.org or follow
Has
This Ever
Happened
To You?
“I have a situation that I’m not sure how to
handle, and my manager is not available. I
think there is a policy and procedure that
would guide me, but I don’t know how to
find it, so I’ll just guess what to do.”
There’s a link to Policies & Procedures under the Publications section
of the Queen’s Intranet. Don’t guess
– look it up. Policies and procedures
(P&Ps) are developed to ensure that
our activities are performed in compliance with the law and other rules and
regulations. They also are designed to
lead to quality outcomes—either clinically, operationally, or both.
The Hospital Safety Score on Twitter or
Facebook. Consumers can also download the free Hospital Safety Score mobile app for Apple and Android devices.
The Queen’s Print Connection is published by Creative Services. If you have
news or wish to opine, call 691-7532 or
email [email protected]. The news
deadline is Monday prior to publication.
QHS/QMC Pres. . . . . . . .Art Ushijima
Publisher . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Keala Peters
Editor/Writer . . . . . . . . . .Jason Kimura
Assist. Ed./Writer . . . . . Glee Stormont
NHCH Contributor . . .Krista Anderson
The Queen’s Health Systems consists of The
Queen’s Medical Center, The Queen’s Medical
Center – West O’ahu, The Queen’s Health Care
Centers, Queen Emma Land Company, Queen’s
Development Corporation, Queen’s Insurance
Exchange, Inc., Moloka‘i General Hospital and
North Hawai‘i Community Hospital, and has
ownership interests in CareResource Hawai‘i,
Hamamatsu/Queen’s PET Imaging Center, and
Diagnostic Laboratory Services, Inc.
queens.org
The Queen’s Health Systems is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit corporation