Newswise — The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) recognizes 144 units from 113 hospitals that earned the Beacon Award for Excellence between Jan. 1, 2017, and Dec. 31, 2017. (View recipient list.)
The Beacon Award for Excellence, lauds hospital units that employ evidence-based practice to improve patient and family outcomes. The award provides gold, silver and bronze levels of recognition to hospital units that exemplify excellence in professional practice, patient care and outcomes. Recognition continues for three years.
Beacon-designated units meet criteria in five categories that are consistent with criteria for other national awards, including Magnet® recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Forum’s Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality awards. Units that receive the Beacon Award demonstrate practices that align with AACN’s Healthy Work Environment Standards.
Recipients of a gold-level Beacon Award demonstrate staff-driven excellence in sustained unit performance and improved patient outcomes that exceed national benchmarks. Silver-level recipients demonstrate continuous learning and effective systems to achieve optimal patient care. Bronze-level awardees demonstrate success in developing, deploying and integrating unit-based performance criteria for optimal outcomes.
AACN President Christine S. Schulman, MS, RN, CNS, CCRN-K, critical care and trauma clinical nurse specialist at Legacy Health in Portland, Oregon, praises the exemplary efforts of the unit caregivers who achieved the Beacon Award for Excellence.
“The caregivers in these units are healthcare professionals committed to the best in patient care,” Schulman said. “The continued growth of the Beacon Award program shows the commitment of caregivers and their hospitals to work together to achieve healthy work environments that support excellent care of patients and their families.”
In 2017, units at three hospitals became the first to be recognized with three consecutive Beacon Awards. The cardiovascular unit at Fresno Heart and Surgical Hospital in California, the cardiovascular intensive care unit (ICU) at Unity Point Health Methodist in Peoria, Illinois, and the medical-surgical ICU at Morristown Medical Center in New Jersey each have demonstrated an ongoing dedication to the award’s high standards.
“An honor like this lets patients and families know how exceptional the care is here,” said Heather Rodriquez, RN, chief nursing officer for Fresno Heart and Surgical Hospital. “In the nursing community, the Beacon designation is evidence that we’re doing the right things to improve patient outcomes and providing the kind of supportive and collaborative work environment that leads to amazing morale among our nurses, which in turn enhances the patient experience.”
In another milestone for the program, AACN recognized the medical-surgical ICU at St. Michael’s Hospital in Ontario, Canada, with a gold-level Beacon Award and three units from King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with bronze-level awards. The recognition marks the first time the award has been granted to hospitals from outside North America.
In all, 32 units received gold-level Beacon awards, the award’s highest distinction.
A total of 24 hospitals had multiple units honored with an award in 2017, demonstrating excellence in caring for high-acuity and critically ill patients and their families.
Florida had 17 hospital units recognized in 2017, followed by Texas with 15 units and Pennsylvania and New York with 13 units each.
AACN honors units that earn the Beacon Award for Excellence during the National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition (NTI), the world’s largest educational conference and trade show for nurses who care for acutely and critically ill patients and their families. The next NTI takes place in Boston, May 21-24 (with preconferences May 20).
Learn more about the Beacon Award for Excellence, and read about one unit’s Beacon journey in the Your Stories section of the AACN website.
About the Beacon Award for Excellence: Established in 2003, AACN’s award recognizes top hospital units that meet standards of excellence in recruitment and retention; education, training and mentoring; research and evidence-based practice; patient outcomes; leadership and organizational ethics; and creation of a healthy work environment. Award criteria — which measure systems, outcomes and environments against evidence-based national criteria for excellence — provide a mechanism to initiate patient safety efforts. To learn more about the award, visit www.aacn.org/beacon or call 800-899-2226.
About the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses: Founded in 1969 and based in Aliso Viejo, California, the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) is the largest specialty nursing organization in the world. AACN represents the interests of more than half a million acute and critical care nurses and has more than 200 chapters throughout the United States. The organization’s vision is to create a healthcare system driven by the needs of patients and their families in which acute and critical care nurses make their optimal contribution.
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, 101 Columbia, Aliso Viejo, CA 92656-4109; 949-362-2000; www.aacn.org; facebook.com/aacnface; twitter.com/aacnme
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