As a healthcare leader and a viable part of a fast-growing city, St. Lucie Medical Center has always looked for innovative ways to meet the healthcare needs in its community. Inspired by the 12-bed hospital model at Baptist Healthcare System in Miami, St. Lucie Medical Center is reorganizing its nursing delivery model.
St. Lucie has updated its delivery model to incorporate professional nurses at the bedside whose main focus is integrating evidence-based practice in a way that compliments medical care as well as the individual needs of the patient and family. In partnership with Florida Atlantic University, through the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), a curriculum was pioneered that is designed to develop Clinical Nurse Leaders (CNLs). CNLs are masters prepared nurses whose curriculum focuses on advanced clinical assessment skills and provides participants with the knowledge base required to assist patients and families as they move through todays very complex continuum of care. St. Lucie Medical Center recognizes the value of the CNL role and made the decision to implement the project on two units prior to the CNLs graduation. It is not a simple process to change the care delivery process. It takes examining your nursing philosophy and principles and being willing to take a risk. However, the program is expected to yield many advantages including a decrease in RN turnover, patient length of stay and patient complications, while increasing focus on evidence-based nursing practice. St. Lucie Medical Center is already witnessing significant impact in patient outcomes, the continuity of care and patient, physician and nurse satisfaction. It is also seeing improved core measure results and improved communication between attending physicians and consultants. In addition, the pilot units had no core vacancies due to nursing recruits and did not need to use nursing agency staff.
