UNCH 2019 Nursing Annual Report - 4

While there are many examples of this focus to
choose from, I would like to acknowledge just a
few tremendous accomplishments:
OUTSTANDING PATIENT EXPERIENCE AWARD™
Our feedback from patients and families tells us
that you are doing an outstanding job, as evidenced
by the fact that we received the 2019 Outstanding
Patient Experience Award™ from Healthgrades,
given to the hospitals that are in the top 15% in
the nation for overall patient experience based
on HCAHPS scores. We have received this award
every year since 2015, a terrific accomplishment.
Additionally, UNC Hospitals is ranked second
among 93 academic medical centers for Patient
Centeredness by Vizient, and is currently at the 91st
percentile for the category 'likelihood to recommend
the hospital' on HCAHPS scores. I am so proud of
these achievements and what they represent even
while you are juggling other challenges.

A FOCUS ON EDUCATION
We continue to support our nursing staff in working
to obtain their Baccalaureate degree in nursing, as
evidence supports a positive relationship between
higher levels of nursing education and better
patient outcomes. With our focus on this goal of a
high percentage of clinical RNs with BSN or higher
degrees in Nursing, we ended the 2019 year with
a rate of 75% this year, higher than the 73% for
national average for Magnet® designated hospitals
and significantly higher than the national average
for all hospitals of 54%. Similarly, we continue to
have a high percentage of clinical RNs who have
achieved certification in their specialty area. UNCH
now has more than 47% of RN staff who are
certified, again higher than the national average for
Magnet® designated hospitals of 36%. The Nursing
Professional Development Council and Certification
Committee have worked diligently to assist in
meeting or exceeding these goals.

4 | 2019 Nursing Annual Report

OUTPERFORMING IN PATIENT SAFETY
We have some outstanding patient safety metric
outcomes to celebrate! For the sixth time in a row,
UNC Hospitals received an "A" for the Leapfrog
hospital safety grade. This is considered the gold
standard measure of patient safety and is based
on 28 different outcome measures and data. In
Calendar Year 2019 for nursing quality measures,
we achieved several meaningful successes: 77% of
inpatient units outperformed the National Database
for Nursing Quality Indicators top 25th percentile
benchmark for restraint measures; 72% of units
outperformed the NDNQI national benchmark for
fall prevention; and 68% of units outperformed the
NDNQI national benchmark for skin care, putting
us in the top 25th percentile benchmark for this
indicator. Additionally, our Central Line infection
rate, our C. Difficile rate, and our Hospital Acquired
Pneumonia rates were all below the ones for last
year. These are remarkable achievements and
mean such good things for our patients! The nursing
team contributes heavily to success in exceeding
our organizational quality goals in reducing patient
harm. And as we all know, every time these metrics
improve, it means more patients are going home
because of your good work.

MAGNET® REDESIGNATION
Our document was successfully submitted in August
as we work towards our Magnet® redesignation! This
is an important milestone on our journey towards
our third designation, and particularly impressive as
it showcases a multitude of examples of the quality
and research projects that you are doing throughout
the hospitals, clinics, and procedural areas. The
document is a wonderful celebration of examples
of outstanding patient care and outcomes. We look
forward to welcoming the Magnet appraisal team in
2020 for a site visit as the next step in our journey.
UNCH 2019 Nursing Annual Report

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