Cedars-Sinai’s commitment to excellence in nursing is again being celebrated because the organization has earned its sixth-consecutive Magnet designation, widely considered the highest honor in nursing.
The first Southern Californian hospital to earn Magnet recognition in 2000, Cedars-Sinai has since maintained one of the longest-running Magnet designations in the nation. Cedars-Sinai is one of only 608 of the nation’s more than 6,300 hospitals currently holding a Magnet designation, determined by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet Recognition Program.
“Cedars-Sinai’s 23 years of Magnet recognition is the result of our institution’s daily commitment to excellence in human caring,” says David Marshall, JD, DNP, RN, Senior Vice President, Chief Nursing Executive, James R. Klinenberg, MD, and Lynn Klinenberg Linkin, Chair in Nursing, in honor of Linda Burnes Bolton. “We are incredibly proud of our commitment to outstanding professional practice, innovations, and values that drive our nursing care daily. This foundation of nursing excellence, combined with the support and collaboration of all our healthcare professionals, is the essence of what makes us a Magnet hospital.”
The Magnet recognition has proven beneficial to healthcare organizations, their patients, and their communities.
Research shows benefits include:
- Higher patient satisfaction
- Decreased mortality rates
- Decreased pressure ulcers and falls
- Improved patient safety and quality
- Increased nurse retention and lower burnout
“Cooperation between medical professionals-nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and every discipline that touches patient care-is essential to earning Magnet recognition and building the environment that allows these principles to thrive,” says Anita Girard, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, Chief Nursing Officer and Vice President of Nursing. “Cedars-Sinai is a Magnet organization because all our healthcare professionals are committed to excellence in human caring.”
Magnet recognition requires a rigorous process, demanding widespread participation from leadership and bedside nurses. The written application includes dozens of detailed stories demonstrating how nurses apply Magnet principles in their daily work.
The process also includes an on-site visit and the Commission on Magnet Recognition review. Organizations reapply for recognition every four years and submit documented evidence that staff has sustained and improved Magnet concepts, performance, and quality since its previous designation.
“We are among only a small number of medical centers to achieve six Magnet recognitions,” Girard says. “We’re a Magnet organization every day, committed to delivering outstanding care while developing new evidence-based practices that raise the standards for excellent care.”
The decision to award a Magnet recognition is based on empirical outcomes that reflect four elements: new knowledge, innovation, and improvements; exemplary professional practice; transformational leadership; and structure and policies that empower nurses to have an important say in decisions affecting their work.
“Magnet is the gold standard for nursing,” says Sarah Stepien, MPH, MSN, RN, CMSRN, NPD-BC, Cedars-Sinai’s Magnet Program Director. “The goal isn’t to earn an award, but to create a culture and environment that supports our nurses so they can deliver ‘Excellence in Human Caring’ to our patients and families who count on us.”
Magnet appraisers identified several key strengths of Cedars-Sinai Nursing:
- MD-RN collaboration: The visiting team was especially impressed with the quality of the relationships and the obvious respect between Cedars-Sinai nurses and physicians, as demonstrated through many collaborations and partnerships.
- Clinical nurse education: More than 93% of Cedars-Sinai nurses have a BSN degree or higher, and 82% are specialty certified.
- COVID-19 response: In addition to staying agile to cope with changing needs and conditions as healthcare workers learned more about a novel pandemic virus, the quality of care never diminished, and nursing research contributed to better ways to care for COVID-19 patients as well as protect staff.
- Geriatric care: Geriatric-focused programs with good outcomes, dedicated space, and leadership by nurse experts.
- Nurse-led initiatives: Nurse-led quality improvement and research initiatives occur throughout Cedars-Sinai, leading to improved patient care.
“My catchphrase is ‘I’m proud to be a Cedars-Sinai nurse,’” Marshall says. “I’m especially proud of our nurses today for the incredible care and healing they provide shift after shift. We’re all proud to create an environment that puts our patients first and inspires us always to find new ways to make their care better.”
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