Extenuating and changing circumstances in the healthcare environment can lead to unique challenges. The following two stories demonstrate how our entire organization came together in “village” fashion, combining efforts to address life-threatening situations. The result of these collaborative, interdisciplinary teams produced sustainable solutions to improve care and positively impact patient outcomes.
In February 2022, in response to two unexpected fetal deaths, trained peer supporter Jennifer Hiller, BSN, RN, C-EFM, RNC-OB, listened thoughtfully and compassionately to the concerns and feelings of seven nurses and one obstetrics technician from the Labor and Delivery department at Salinas Valley Health.
In spring 2022, Salinas Valley Health Nurse Manager for Telemetry/1 Main (1 Main) and Telemetry/4T (4T) Laurel Black, MSN, RN, CCRN, was preparing for a major unit reconfiguration for 1 Main.
Because Salinas Valley Health’s original hospital structure was built in the early 1950s, it lacks many of the innovations that mitigate sources of ambient noise in the facility.
Passionate about supporting the emotional and mental health needs of new moms, our perinatal nurses are going beyond clinical work to bridge an important gap and provide diapers for local families.
Opiate overdose persists as a major public health problem, contributing to significant morbidity and mortality among opiate users globally.
The acuity and intensity of patient care increase with each passing decade. Nurses must make complex decisions, adapt to ever-changing technology, understand health policy, and integrate seamlessly as a team.
Last year’s annual report highlighted how the Education Department at Salinas Valley Health Medical Center enhanced its already outstanding six-month program of classes and preceptorship for new nursing residents.
Salinas Valley Health recognizes exemplary clinical practice, extraordinary service, and compassion and caring demonstrated by nursing staff with The DAISY Award® for Extraordinary Nurses.
Exemplary Professional Practice
Nursing today offers a wide variety of fulfilling opportunities that stretch far beyond the four walls of a hospital and traditional patient care. All nursing roles, however – clinical and nonclinical – involve support, compassion, attention to detail and a desire to make a positive difference in the lives of others.
Exemplary Professional Practice
Because research clearly links delayed mobility after joint replacement to poor clinical outcomes, Orthopedic Nurse Navigator Lydia Sapien, MSN, RN, ONC, CMSRN, took note when, in the summer of 2021, she found that only 79% of knee replacement patients and 54% of hip replacement patients were ambulating within two hours of their arrival to the Ortho-Neuro-Spine (ONS) unit.
Exemplary Professional Practice
Seeking to support vaginal births whenever medically appropriate, the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative set a 23.6% target for the Nulliparous, Term, Singleton, Vertex (NTSV) cesarean birth rate in 2021.
Exemplary Professional Practice
Salinas Valley Health Medical Center uses the Press Ganey® National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators™ (NDNQI) to benchmark performance on various nurse-sensitive indicators (NSIs) against national averages.
Exemplary Professional Practice
In February 2022, Salinas Valley Health Diabetic Nurse Navigator Veronica Zesati, BSN, RN, HACP, noticed that the rate of hypoglycemic events for patients with diabetes over the age of 14 had climbed to 21.1%.
Exemplary Professional Practice
During late 2021 and early 2022, Salinas Valley Health Intensive Care Unit (ICU) clinical nurse Francie Espino, BSN, RN, CCRN, CSC, noticed increases in both the rate (incidence) of new hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs) and their quarterly prevalence. By February 2022, the rate had jumped to 3.88%.
New Knowledge Innovation & Improvement
The transition involving space used by our Progressive Care Unit and Outpatient Surgery Unit highlighted teamwork at its best as it forged a new solution for the benefit of Salinas Valley Health patients.
New Knowledge Innovation & Improvement
Magnet®-designated hospitals have structures and processes in place to support nurses in integrating evidence-based practice and research into practice.
New Knowledge Innovation & Improvement
We congratulate our nurses and other professionals who have disseminated their work both internally and externally via presentations and publications.
