Learning To Create A Sustainable Education Platform to Meet the Needs of Bedside RN's, To Help Ensure Safe Care For All.
Summary
This Advance Clinical Practice Fellowship took place at McMaster Children’s Hospital.
The Critical Care Rapid Response Team (PACE) is a valued resource for ward MDs and Nursing Staff. The team is utilized for their knowledge and skills and facilitates the rapid assessment, provision of care and transfer to PICU for patients requiring critical care. The PACE RNs are leaders at MCH with skills and expertise that are valued by the ward staff. Clinical support calls allow ward RNs to benefit from the skills and expertise of the PACE RNs through mentorship and support 24/7. The PACE Team at MCH was founded in 2005. Clinical support was implemented as part of the PACE role in 2015. In the last 12 months the team has responded to 610 clinical support calls. PACE clinical support calls occur when an inpatient area identifies that they are in need of assistance and are looking for mentorship and support. This assistance has been identified through clinical support surveys and is important for skills such as blood work, difficult PIV access or obtaining an ECG. However, other requests require in person mentorship for skills that ward RNS are not confident in performing such as certain medication administrations, chest tube sampling etc. Unit specific education materials are available on inpatient Share Points. However, there were educational gaps discovered and a need for ward RNs to access PACE RN's expertise during times the team was otherwise engaged. The PACE team is more than just a resource that can be accessed, it embodies excellence and leadership in pediatric care. This fellowship provided the opportunity to create a sustainable education platform to be utilized by all Nursing Staff within MCH. The platform includes PACE specific resources (how-to videos, assessment skills, get to know the team etc.) which are housed in a PACE Share Point ensuring 24/7 options for mentorship and support while also validating and reinforcing skills and knowledge being taught by Clinical Educators across MCH.
This Advance Practice Clinical Fellowship has provide me with the knowledge required to successfully develop and implement an education SharePoint that meets the learning needs of bedside nurses to better ensure safe care for all pediatric in patients. This fellowship has enhanced my own mentorship and leadership skills as a Pace Nurse (Critical Care Response Nurse) within the hospital. Working closely with Managers, Educators, the Pediatric Critical Care Response team and bedside RN’s has provided the opportunity to develop and excel in the art of collaboration. This APCF also was educational in the sense that it provided the opportunity to be an active listener. This skill development provided opportunity to make effective change while identifying and supporting nursing needs and wants. This was a necessity for creating a sustainable educational SharePoint. Data collection methods specific to how to create a needs based assessment were learned. Knowledge was gained in regards to how to create proper surveys and identify relevant information useful for creating an education platform. Strong interpersonal skills were developed and relationship building with colleges throughout the corporation. These relationships remain ongoing and will continue to support me in my future practice/roles within the organization. The importance of finding creative ways to engage staff, communicate and collaborate were all key factors for creating a sustainable resources. This APCF has allowed the opportunity to examine and understand the barriers and gaps within a system and how to effectively challenge present practice to create positive change. Skills in knowledge translation were developed and shared in the creation of the Planet PACE SharePoint. The skills and knowledge gained from this APCF will continue to grow and develop as they assist with the sustainability of PLANET PACE SharePoint.
Outcomes
Planet PACE was designed to support bedside nurses which has enabled and empowered them to provide safe care to all patients. The Nurses at MCH have been provided with access to valuable education tools which they identified as needing clinical support for. The tools were created to empower and assist them at providing daily care and skills specific to the learning gaps they have identified as needing assistance with. Planet PACE continues to be updated as needed to provide continued support to the staff. Platform metrics and monthly data collection tools are presently being used to monitor and assist with the sustainability of the education platform. Patient safety events and data will continue to be followed to ensure best care for all. This will be evident on monthly PACE data collection documentation and reflective in follow-up surveys at six months post the launch of the educational SharePoint Planet PACE.
At McMaster Children's hospital one of the ways in which we participate within the organizational strategies is to utilize Continuous Quality Improvement Strategies (CQI). CQI allows for us to identify issues and problem solve them together to allow for a safer environment for patient's family and staff. This Advance Practice Clinical Fellowship has supported CQI as it has provided a new improvement opportunity for positive change. This improvement opportunity has also been helpful in supporting the Critical Care Response teams (PACE) RNs. The educational SharePoint which was created has provided an opportunity to assist them with meeting the needs of the McMaster Children’s Hospital to provide clinical support at all times. It also has provided an opportunity to utilize and support our culture for safe care which is one of the children's hospitals current initiatives. The fellowship is also in alignment with and has contributed to our corporation’s core value which is best care for all. The development of Planet PACE has ensured that the PACE RN’s have a means for backup support when they are unavailable to provide physical support to the ward. PACE nurses no longer feel like they are not meeting the needs of ward nurses or their patients, which was identified in the Clinical Support Surveys completed during this APCF. In order to ensure that the needs of the PACE Team are being met the team was very involved in the creation of the platform. Monthly newsletters and surveys were completed by all staff to ensure the platform will be sustainable by the team. The development of positive working relationships with PACE Nurses and bedside Nurses has also been achieved as evidenced by comments taken from the Ward clinical support survey which was completed as part of this fellowship. This APCF has provided an opportunity to support and increase bedside nurses' and PACE nurses' satisfaction and improved the ability to work as a team to ensure patients receive the best care for all.
Overall experience
With the completion of this Advanced Practice Clinical Fellowship comes a great sense of pride and accomplishment. I have learned tools which I will forever use to support my career and my home life. My initial intentions were to help the nurses within McMaster Children’s Hospital and create positive change. I have been given the opportunity and support through this fellowship to bring my vision to life and support patient safety throughout our hospital. The support of the RNAO with monthly meetings was very helpful. The meetings provided a chance to meet with other fellows and learn from their challenges as well as share my own. My mentor team was so helpful providing support and empowering me to be my best throughout the process. I have learned from them how to be a mentor and I have a new found appreciation for empowering staff to create positive change. I have built new relationships within the organization which will stay with me as I continue to grow within my career as a Registered Nurse. As a bedside Nurse we do not always have time to focus on exploring the gaps we find within our daily practices. I feel so thankful that I have been given the opportunity to take the time to focus on my learning needs and apply them to make positive change and improve patient safety within the organization. I have been offered the opportunity by my organization to extend my fellowship in order to support sustainability of Planet Pace. In addition, I will be assisting our transport team in creating a new education platform for the team. Achieving the support required to complete a learning opportunity has really empowered me to be the best I can be. I am and will always be grateful for this opportunity to advance my learning and skills.
