Education and Experience Make the Grade
Top-quality education. Valuable clinical experience. Unique opportunities. All this and more await student nurses at Lancaster Institute for Health Education’s School of Nursing. Just ask the December 2002 graduating class. During their final semester, they had the rare chance to use their education and experience to redesign an entire nursing unit at Lancaster General Hospital—8 West.
In designing the new unit, student nurses collaborated with experienced nurses and educators. They decided the type of patients the floor would serve, staffing, budgeting, and more. They created the framework for their professional environment, including the service standards they are committed to maintaining.
Judi Brendle, BSN, RN, 8 West/North Nurse Manager, and Kara Lefever, BSN, RN, CCRN, Nurse Educator, worked closely with the students.
“The nurses were enthusiastic about every aspect of the project,” Judi says. “They want to do things perfectly and ensure safe, quality care.”
Kara was also impressed. “They sought advice and listened to recommendations to make sure that patient care is always the top priority.”
The 17-bed unit opened in January, staffed largely by the graduate nurses. For LGH, this project helped to recruit talented graduate nurses. With this new nursing team, LGH was able to open the new unit and thus accommodate more patients.
From RN Amie Garman’s point-of-view, the offer was the kind you get “once in a lifetime.” The experience and knowledge have given her career a strong foundation. She says that the focus on teamwork has created “a fantastic working environment and patient care.”
Adrienne Bard, RN, also jumped at the chance to be a part of the special project. “Thanks to professionals who helped teach and orient us, I am sure that 8 West will continue to be a success and an asset to the hospital.”