Ease the Way - Gebauer Patient Comfort Blog (19)

Why Nurse Leaders Should Join a Hospital Governing Board

By: Bethany Nock | On: March 2, 2017

Nurse leaders historically have been underrepresented on hospital governing boards. Although most boards included at least a few doctors, it was unusual to see a nurse serve. Unfortunately, that meant the very people who had important experience and insights about patient care didn’t have a voice in the way the hospital was run.

Today, as hospital leaders realize the importance of creating a collaborative environment, nurses are gradually being added to hospital boards. Supporting this initiative is The Nurses on Board Coalition (NOBC). Founded in 2014, the NOBC represents two dozen national nursing and other organizations, including the American Nurses Association, American Academy of Nursing and AARP. Its mission is to increase awareness of the unique perspective nurses can offer and ensure at least 10,000 nurses are on corporate and health-related boards as well as panels and commissions by 2020.

Becoming a member of your hospital’s governing board is an excellent way to initiate positive changes that will benefit the entire hospital and improve patient care. Here are three reasons that you should consider joining a governing board.

How to Create a Nursing Professional Development Strategy

By: Jennifer Clark | On: February 28, 2017

At the end of a busy week, professional development is probably the last thing on your mind. Unfortunately, if you don’t make time for this, you’ll be overlooking an excellent chance to enhance your nursing skills, advance your career and improve the quality of care you provide your patients.

Every professional — especially nurses — should have a strategy for career development. In the dynamic healthcare landscape, there are many new opportunities to grow as both a care provider and a person. With an established strategy in place, you can make sure you’re always ready to take the leap into something new.

Keep these three steps in mind when you create your nursing professional development strategy.

9 Best Practices for Hospital Fundraising

By: Bethany Nock | On: February 14, 2017

Grants, Medicare payments and private payor reimbursements may be enough to keep a hospital running, but substantial improvements to a hospital require financial assistance from outside donors.

Successfully soliciting contributions can be challenging; taking the wrong approach can have major consequences. However, a healthcare organization's facilities can benefit tremendously from well-executed fundraising programs.

Read on to learn nine of the best practices for hospital fundraising.

How Nurse Practitioners Can Fill the Gap in Primary Care

By: Jennifer Clark | On: February 8, 2017

The demand for primary care is increasing, largely due to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which granted healthcare access to many who were previously uninsured or underinsured.

A study conducted by Association of American Medical Colleges projected the demand for physicians to increase by 11 percent to 17 percent between 2013 and 2025. While demand for this type of care is increasing, the current trend shows a shortage of primary care physicians.

What can private practices do to ensure they can continue to meet the needs of their patients? One way is to tap into the skills of nurse practitioners to help fill in these gaps.

The American Association of Nurse Practitioners reports that there are more than 222,000 nurse practitioners (NP) licensed in the U.S. NPs are considered advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) which allows them to assess patients, make diagnoses and prescribe medication, with or without physician oversight dependent on location.

This article will explore the benefits these clinicians can bring to your practice and how they can help you meet the growing demand for care.

The Future of Nursing: What You Need to Know Today

By: Bethany Nock | On: February 2, 2017

There has never been a more exciting time to be a nurse. Not only is the number of clinical technologies designed to help make nursing easier and improve patient care constantly increasing, but the opportunities for growth as a nurse are increasing as well.

The healthcare environment is dynamic, with medical breakthroughs emerging every day. To stay ahead of the game, nurses must stay up to date with the latest trends as well as potential future healthcare developments.

As 2017 begins, take a look at these three trends to get an idea of what the future of nursing will look like over the coming months.