■ Healthcare
Continued From Page 20 opportunities for research , knowledge-sharing and collaboration . From the implementation of innovative staffing strategies and new care delivery models to applying evidence-based principles to prevent disease and address care quality , the work of nurses during COVID‐19 has helped to fill gaps in the literature and will help support an enhanced response to future outbreaks across the globe . The pandemic also served to highlight the true strength of our nurses and offered real-time lessons in how vital holistic self-care is for nurses and all healthcare professionals . While our nurses experienced overwhelming challenges throughout the pandemic , it also served to strengthen the nursing profession ’ s deep commitment to purpose .
Holy Name Medical Center By Michele Acito , DNP , RN . NE- BC , NP-C , Executive Vice President , Chief Nursing Officer
During the early onset of the pandemic , Holy Name ’ s Magnet-recognized nurses pivoted quickly — sharing knowledge , innovating best practices and expanding their levels of expertise . Training was available on-site within Holy Name Medical Center ’ s Institute for Simulation Learning , as nurses integrated their professional practice with specialty areas within the care team — emergency medicine , pulmonology , respiratory care , critical care , rehabilitation therapy — in order to provide optimal patient care along the continuum . When visitors were not allowed at patients ’ bedsides , our nurses became not only caregivers , but family , as they often were with patients at the end of life . Two years later , Holy Name ’ s patients benefit from our nurses ’ acumen in providing compassionate , skilled care ; by expanding treatment options through clinical research protocols ; by developing and beta-testing new technology ; and through advancing acute care at the highest level . Our nursing team was central to the rollout and distribution of Holy Name ’ s successful COVID‐19 vaccination program , which has provided more than 262,000 vaccine doses at several community sites , pop-up events and through homebound visits . The nursing profession gained a renewed respect from the public , as Holy Name ’ s Sister Claire Tynan School of Nursing witnessed a 90 percent uptick in applications in 2020-2021 . The calling to become a nurse has never been stronger , nor more crucial .
Jefferson Health-New Jersey By Helene Burns , DNP , RN , NEA-BC , Senior Vice President , Chief Nursing Officer
The COVID‐19 pandemic came speeding at us like a fast train . We learned daily about the disease , how it spreads and how to care for infected patients coming to our hospitals . I recall talking to a bedside nurse during the early days of the pandemic in March 2020 . With tears in her eyes , she said , “ I never thought that being a nurse meant I would be putting my health and the health of my family at risk .” Never before in my career of more than 40 years had I heard a nurse say that coming to work could be that hazardous to them and their family . In the early stages , we learned on a daily basis about the virus and how best to keep ourselves , as healthcare workers , safe . Today , we understand COVID much more ; there are more treatments , and there are also vaccines . As nurses , we have learned to aid in healing , and at times , to be there to hold a dying patient ’ s hand . That is what it means to be a nurse . It has just been more intense and challenging during the pandemic .
“ As nurses , we need to develop and maintain a real-time crisis support and coping system . We have an opportunity to work collaboratively with our mental health colleagues so we can better take care of ourselves to be able to best care for our patients .”
RWJBarnabas Health By Nancy E . Holecek , RN , BSN , MHA , MAS , Executive Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer
Over the last two years , nurses have gone above and beyond clinical care . The job description expanded in ways we never thought possible , and nurses across the country have come together to meet that need with empathy , skill and commitment . The pandemic cemented nursing as a fundamental cornerstone of patient care and highlighted the vital importance of standardizing nursing clinical practice and policy , creating more opportunities for leadership development and peer review , and supporting nurses ’ emotional and mental health . It ’ s also taught us to remain nimble , be more innovative , and approach challenges creatively , whether that ’ s through forming specific pandemic care teams or designing virtual nursing models that provide newer nurses with the support of a more-senior counterpart .
RWJBarnabas Health , Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey By Carolyn Hayes , Ph . D ., RN , NEA-BC , FAAN , Chief Nursing Officer , Oncology Services
As nurses , we pride ourselves on being resilient and able to take on any challenge that comes our way , but the challenges we faced throughout the COVID‐19 pandemic has , and will continue , to shift our perspectives on how we are delivering care . In this field , we teach our patients , given their compromised immune state , that even loved ones are potentially hazardous to their health and they need to be discerning about with whom they spend their time . Especially in the earlier days of the pandemic , we put ourselves in our patients ’ shoes and learned how social distancing is difficult for them — physically , emotionally and spiritually . As the fatigue of the vigilance required to stay safe grew , so too did our empathy for our patients . Through this unprecedented experience , we can walk away with opportunities that we can take forward when the pandemic is behind us . Emotional support has never been more important . When we all find ways to return to our lives , those with cancer will continue to have these challenges in their lives , and they should not have to navigate them alone .
Saint Peter ’ s Healthcare System By Linda Carroll , MSN , RN , RN-BC , Vice President of Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer
The role of nursing changed dramatically during the pandemic . The staff quickly transformed into motivators and innovators , developing and implementing strategies to best care for patients with limited resources and supplies — always putting patients first despite the unprecedented challenges . Nurses became more than caregivers to their patients . They stayed at the patient ’ s bedside when loved ones could not , providing comfort and an emotional connection for both the patient and family . We quickly developed a care partner model based on recommendations from staff nurses , nurse leaders , educators and Saint Peter ’ s Professional Practice Council — our self-governance model — to accommodate what was needed at the bedside . We redeployed nurses from every specialty to the front line to help . Our Workplace Environment and Staffing Council promoted a healthy work environment to ensure resiliency , not only from a safety perspective , but by placing emphasis on the staff ’ s physical and mental well-being and establishing respite or sanctuary spaces and a support group . It is
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