Is Magnet Status The Path For Job Satisfaction?

There are many major challenges facing the nursing shortage environment today. One of those challenges includes the facility recruitment of registered nurses and then the facility retention of the registered nurses that they have recruited. Factors to consider would be as to why a registered nurse chose to accept a particular job and will they choose to stay at the facility after being given an employment opportunity. A facility’s reputation, union status, autonomy and salary are among some of the factors that influence recruitment. Factors that influence retention includes the inclusion in decision making, practice

Forces of magnetism, nurse-sensitive quality indicators, which reflect elements of patient care that, are directly affected by nursing practice (Schmidt and McFarlane 2015). These indicators are said to reflect three aspects of nursing care: structure, process, and outcomes. The establishment of Forces of Magnetism (14) by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) 2013 was created to provide the conceptual framework for the Magnet appraisal process. Must of the original design was to differentiated organizations best able to recruit and retain nurses during the nursing shortages of the 1970s and 1980s (Schmidt and McFarlane 2016 and Forces of Magnetism 2018).

Magnet recognition is a performance recognition that was started by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (Drenkard, 2010). The recognition is awarded to facilities who have applied and met the requirements (Magnet Recognition and Pathway to Excellence, 2018). The goals of the Magnet recognition are to improve positive patient outcomes while also providing an environment which promotes growth and safety for the nurses (Magnet Recognition and Pathway to Excellence, 2018). The opportunities for nurses that are provided by the Magnet recognition are continued education, promotion of growth by certifications and licenses, recognition of individual nurses, and staff satisfaction (Magnet Recognition and Pathway to Excellence,

Currently, 6% of hospitals in the United States hold Magnet status (Lowell General Hospital, n.d.). Being a Magnet hospital is an accreditation awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (Lowell General Hospital, n.d.). Such recognition is given to hospitals that aim to focus on quality-patient care provided by nurses (Lowell General Hospital, n.d.). This status is earned and achieved after extensive review, and is good for four years before they are required to meet 35 different areas of focus again (Lowell General Hospital, n.d.). Trinkoff et al. (2010) review the working conditions of hospitals to determine whether Magnet status improves nursing working conditions. The authors of this article come from different areas of expertise as they hold nursing degrees, PhD degrees, ScD degrees, and many others with an educational background in statistics, epidemiology, and nursing. However, the authors fail to study the patient outcomes between Magnet and non-Magnet hospitals and to see if Magnet status has an impact on patient outcomes. They fail to look at the entire picture, as their primary focus is on the working conditions of nurses, and not the patients.

The employee engagement measure is to increase number of certified nurses with RNC-NIC or CCRN designation. This will be accomplished by implementing a certification class for interested nurses on the unit. Success of this certification class will aide in improving the level of nursing knowledge on the unit, also increasing NDNQI scores and help in maintaining our Magnet designation as a hospital.

In today’s world, healthcare is under a microscope. Surveys are done, standards are set, and patients have the option to choose where they receive their care. Research is conducted on physicians, quality of care, and cost of care are becoming the main thoughts when choosing a hospital. When you hear “Magnet Status Hospital” (MSH) it immediately grabs your attention. What exactly sets an MSH on a higher level than one that’s not? More importantly, how does this affect the nurses? The purpose of this paper is to explain the increasing rise of MSH ‘s, why healthcare, specifically nursing, is trending in this way, how it affects nurses, and the benefits of attaining magnet status.

With over 2 million jobs, registered nurses represent the largest health care occupation (Windle, 2008, p. 209). Although nurses are the biggest health care occupation, there continues to be a shortage in the United States. The shortage has worsened because of rising healthcare costs and a focus on cost containment, which has negatively impacted nurse work environments (Keeler and Cramer, 2007, p. 350). With demand for healthcare expecting to continue to increase and financial pressures becoming more burdensome, these shortages will likely become even more critical in coming years if not adequately addressed (Love et al., 2006, p. 558). The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates 1.2 million nurses will be required to fill new and vacated nursing positions by the end of 2014 (Windle, 2008, p. 209).

Also, to attain magnet status hospitals must follow a set of steps. They must first perform a gap analysis to prove that each of the fourteen forces of magnetism are present within the hospital (Turkel, 2004). Next, they must educate the organization, develop a work plan to fix the gaps identified in the gap analysis, and submit the application (Flores, 2007). After they submit their application, they must prepare a written document for submission to the American Nurses Credentialing Center, prepare for the ANCC site survey, and prepare

From what I have read about, the main concerns with Magnet hospitals is that the hospitals are using the award as a “promotional tool” (“Magnet status,” 2008) instead of using it to actually help implement effective, positive change for nurses, their patients, and the hospital in general. Nurses want “Magnet status” to be more largely controlled by nurses, both within the hospitals they work at and on a larger scale, instead of the teams of management personnel that oversee the Magnet program currently. Many nurses believe that the award “[offers] only the illusion of nurse empowerment,” (“Magnet status,” 2008) since hospitals have continued to treat nurses as second-tear employees. A list of changes to the Magnet program were written up by The Truth About Nursing’s founder, Sandy Summers. Among these changes were suggestions such as zero tolerance policies for abuse, nursing residency programs, higher education benefits, and my personal favorite, that “the CEO of the hospital should be a nurse” (“Magnet status,” 2008). What I could gather from these suggestions was that nurses wanted the Magnet program to actually be about nursing, instead of a marketing gimmick used by hospital higher-ups to impress patients. The purpose should be to allow for exceptional patient-centered nursing care and to promote an egalitarian workplace that keeps staff motivated. In my opinion, the Magnet program should incorporate some if not all of the suggestions offered by Summers. The award should be looked at as a long-term goal where conditions are met slowly but effectively, so that hospitals can commend each achievement and learn to appreciate their nurses. At the end of the day, satisfied nurses equal satisfied patients, (Molyneux, 2011) and the Magnet program should whole-heartedly reflect

Magnet status is one of the highest national recognition for excellent nursing practice in hospitals (ANCC, 2015). It is considered the “gold standard” (Luzinski, 2011). Magnet status recognizes the capability and competence of the

On practical lines, although the hospital has appointed nursing leaders and is practically active in creating community awareness and education program, in some ways it has failed to remain consistent with all of the forces. For this reason, questions can be raised on retention and support of qualified workforce. Moreover, the Adventist La Grange Hospital is overly dependent on online recruitment. As a result, there is a high chance that the organization will not be able to reach many potential nurses. The organization will have to consider opening other channels for recruitment. The organization will also have to consider the inconsistencies that are present in the organization due to which it has failed to achieve Magnet accreditation .

Many healthcare organizations worldwide are striving to achieve magnet designation. Having the magnet title is essential because it recognizes healthcare organizations that act as a “magnet” for excellence by establishing a work environment that identifies, rewards, and promotes professional nursing (ANCC Magnet Designation, 2012). A magnet hospital is considered to be one where nursing provides excellent patient care, where nurses have a high level of job satisfaction, and where there is a low staff

This indicates a magnet accreditation is only allocated to hospitals and health care organisations that are involved in providing health care of the very best quality and has active engagement of nurses where they must lead, manage, and collaboratively follow all the clinical protocol. Since then, magnet accreditation has been viewed as recognition of hospitals that have created excellent patient-care environment and support the professional practice of nursing (American Nurses Credentialing Centre (ANCC), 2014). Currently, there are 441 magnet hospitals in the nation out of which 35 falls in Texas.

The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ACNN) sponsors the Magnet Recognition Program, which focuses on the development of nursing practices and evaluates the environment where nursing is practiced. This program is well recognized by organizations throughout the country, as the Magnet Journey and is considered to be one of the highest achievements that organizations can obtain (Broom, & Tilbury, 2007). Organizations that strive to achieve the Magnet designation, acknowledge the link between a healthy work environment and the development of an organization of nursing excellence. Hospitals utilizing the Magnet concept demonstrate the following characteristics; (a) authentic leadership, (b) skilled communication, (c) effective decision making, (d) quality patient care processes, (e) collaboration and teamwork among all healthcare workers, (f) professional growth and accountability, (g) clinically competent staff and (h) adequate staffing levels (Shirey, 2006). All the above components

In the early 1980s there was a significant nursing shortage and high turnover at hospitals. Research by the American Academy of Nursing recognized forty-one hospitals that attracted nurses to work at their location because of their more collaborative and supportive work environments. These hospitals were more effective with filling nursing job vacancies compared with similar hospitals. The American Nurse’s Credentialing Center (ANCC), an organization of American Nurses Association developed a voluntary recognition program to formally credential Magnet hospitals, and the first Magnet hospital was credentialed in 1994 (Kelly, 2011). ANCC review certain criteria that are design to measure the quality and strength of nursing practice at the hospital. Nurses who work at these Magnet hospitals have higher job satisfaction and reports that they have better communication between the nurses and other healthcare team. Most importantly, Magnet hospitals have high quality nursing care, better patient outcomes, and high patient satisfaction.