Nursing at West Kendall Baptist Hospital

Recognizing Partners in Care

Sandra McLean, R.N., West Kendall Baptist Hospital’s chief nursing officer, led the development and implementation of the SUNFLOWER Award Program in 2020 to enhance pride and engagement among clinical partners. The program recognizes the extraordinary care provided by clinical partners and technicians, much in the same way the DAISY Award recognizes nurses. Nurses and clinical partners collaborate to provide high-quality, compassionate patient care.

Developing Nurse Leaders

The development of clinical leaders improves the quality of patient care. Select West Kendall Baptist Hospital nurses attend the Frontline Leader Program, which provides high-level leadership coaching to help nurses develop leadership best practices, build leadership competencies and establish networking relationships. In 2020, numerous nurse leaders, from patient care supervisors to assistant nurse managers to nurse managers, successfully completed this program. To enrich their practice, many nurses participate in unit-based practice councils that promote shared governance and give them a voice in providing outstanding patient care using evidence-based practices.

Improving Health Outcomes

Through the hospital’s onsite and mobile Healthy Hub, our nurses provide adult community members with free, preventive healthcare screenings and help them identify ways to improve their health. Since the opening of the Healthy Hub in October 2014, nurses have performed approximately 28,000 screenings. West Kendall Baptist Hospital nurses also participated in 21 community events in 2020 to educate the public on preventing the spread of infections and managing chronic conditions.

Training Competent Nurses

Evidence has shown that implementing a robust residency for new nurses improves patient care and safety and increases retention of excellent nurses. New nurse graduates at West Kendall Baptist Hospital are well-supported in the Baptist Health South Florida R.N. Residency program — a multispecialty, evidence-based onboarding process that develops competent practicing clinicians. In addition, the R.N. Transition Residency helps experienced nurses transferring to a new area of practice, such as emergency, intensive care, surgery and labor and delivery, adapt to their new environment.

Recognizing Nursing Excellence 

Recognition increases nursing satisfaction, which, in turn, improves care delivery. Each quarter, West Kendall Baptist Hospital honors a deserving nurse with the prestigious DAISY Award, recognizing extraordinary nursing care. Grateful patients, families and peers nominate DAISY Award Honorees who demonstrate excellence through clinical expertise and compassionate care. In 2020, more than 175 nurses were nominated for the award, and Kenneth Cruz, R.N, Alex Vanegas, R.N., Mari Mesa, R.N., and Dianela Moran, R.N, were named the four quarterly DAISY Award winners. In order to develop high-reliability nurse leaders, the hospital also recognizes nurse leaders in the DAISY Nurse Leader Recognition Program. Lupe Almaguer, APRN, Jessica Hucey Nua, R.N., and Zebina Roger, R.N., were the 2020 award recipients.

Rewarding Outstanding Performance

Each year, West Kendall Baptist Hospital presents Nurse of the Year Awards in different categories to honor nurses who have made a significant impact on the quality of healthcare the hospital provides. In 2020, Olivia Cocabo, R.N., Kelly Delgado, R.N., Margaret Geneve, APRN, Rosemarie Schwitzer, APRN, and Joanne Aberilla, R.N., were acknowledged for their outstanding efforts, commitment and achievements.

Honoring Extraordinary Efforts

To recognize interdisciplinary care teams for their extraordinary skill and efforts during the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, West Kendall Baptist Hospital nurse leaders presented plaques of appreciation to the inpatient care teams in the ICU, 4 South, 3 North and the Respiratory department.

Expanding Our Reach

To brighten spirits of the children at the Chapman Partnership Homeless Shelter in Homestead at holiday time, the hospital’s Surgical Services department rasied funds to arrange a day of fun that included a mobile gaming unit and sweet treats.

Earning Prestigious Designations

Outstanding performance in nurse-sensitive metrics contributed to the West Kendall Baptist Hospital’s “A” rating in The Leapfrog Group’s Spring 2020 Hospital Safety Grade and four-star rating in the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services’ Quality Rating program, which helps Medicare beneficiaries compare the quality of Medicare health plans. Our nurses also played a vital role in the hospital’s ranking by U.S. News & World Report as the #11 hospital in Florida and #4 hospital in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale region. Our team is proud to have earned the Gold Plus Quality Award in the American Heart Association’s Get With the Guidelines – Stroke Program, acknowledging consistent compliance with quality measures.

Implementing Clinical Improvements

Exemplary Professional Practice can be measured through each nursing department’s performance on nursing sensitive indicators (NSI), such as catheter-associated urinary tract infections, central line-associated blood stream infections and injury falls. To keep staff engaged in clinical improvement activities, NSIs are tracked and departments compete to outperform the benchmarks.

Executing Best Practices

With the goal of improving service, quality and safety, West Kendall Baptist Hospital nurses form unit-based practice councils and implement performance improvement projects.

• Nurses in Obstetrics recently implemented various initiatives to enhance service and improve patient satisfaction.
• Four Intensive Care Unit nurses implemented a quality improvement project to prevent medical device-related pressure injury occurrences.

Enriching Our Community

Led by West Kendall Baptist Hospital, the Healthy West Kendall coalition was selected as one of five communities in the U.S. to participate in Communities of Excellence 2026 — a learning collaborative that uses the Baldrige Excellence Framework to improve the health status, educational attainment and economic vitality of the community. Our nurses play an important role in achieving these goals.

Promoting Nursing Research

Conducting and advancing nursing research are important for delivering the most effective nursing care. Research and evidence-based practice are supported through the West Kendall Baptist Hospital’s Research & Evidence-Based Council, led by Nurse Scientist Vicky McCue, MSN, RN, CPN. The Council provides a facilitative review process for anyone wishing to conduct research or implement an evidence-based practice. In 2020, 13 nurses were involved in four research studies. Nurse research efforts are also supported by Baptist Health’s Center for Excellence in Nursing, which provides nurses with financial assistance to develop research posters and disseminate their clinical findings to internal and external audiences. In 2020, six nurses presented their projects at local, state and national symposiums.

Engaging the Nursing Team

Engaged and satisfied nurses are central to effective and efficient caregiving teams. Healthcare industry surveys reveal that West Kendall Baptist Hospital nurses are highly engaged and rank their job enjoyment, satisfaction and professional advancement opportunities above the national averages.

Advancing Nursing Education

Nurses with advanced education are better prepared to care for patients in an increasingly complex healthcare delivery system. More than 80 percent of our nurses hold a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. In 2020, 11 nurses earned a Master of Science in Nursing degree, one earned a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, 13 earned specialty certifications and 48 advanced in Baptist Health’s Competency & Clinical Advancement Program.

Enhancing Patient Satisfaction

Proof of the positive impact our nurses make in the lives of those we serve can be found in patient feedback and outcomes. Press Ganey survey results in the category of nurse courtesy ranked between 78 and 94 percent in four care specialties. In addition, inpatient satisfaction ranked in the top decile at nearly 80 percent in the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS).

Delivering Quality Care 

More than 90 percent of the West Kendall Baptist Hospital’s core measures performed in the top decile of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Quality Measure Benchmarks, indicating our nurses’ commitment to providing national standards of care and treatment processes that are proven to reduce complications and lead to better patient outcomes.