Johns Hopkins All Children’s Receives ANCC Magnet Designation
The American Nurses Credentialing Center recognizes nursing excellence at Johns Hopkins All Children’s with this prestigious designation.
Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital has achieved Magnet® designation in recognition of nursing excellence and the highest level of professionalism in nursing practice. This prestigious designation is awarded by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and serves as the gold standard for nursing excellence.
“Magnet recognition is a validation of the level of excellence in care that our nurses provide every day,” says Melissa Macogay, M.B.A., B.S.N., R.N., CCRN-K, NE-BC, vice president and chief nursing officer at Johns Hopkins All Children’s. “It is a milestone that shows that our nurses are committed to ensuring that patients are at the center of everything we do.”
Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital President Thomas Kmetz joined Macogay and other hospital leaders for an early morning conference call on July 29 with Magnet Recognition Program Commission Chair Jeanette Ives Erickson, D.N.P. R.N., NE-BC, F.A.A.N., who shared the news that JHACH is now a Magnet hospital.
“Achieving Magnet recognition affirms the extraordinary compassion and dedication that our 1,100 nurses bring to the care of patients and families,” says Kmetz. “They are a shining example of nursing excellence, and we are proud of their contributions and their commitment to the highest standards.”
The ANCC’s Magnet model provides a framework of key concepts essential to nursing excellence, including transformational leadership, coordination and collaboration across specialties, processes for measuring and improving the quality and delivery of care, and a commitment to using new knowledge, innovation and technology to enhance care and engage patients and families.
The Magnet application process is often described as a journey to excellence. The journey began more than five years ago at Johns Hopkins All Children’s and involved hundreds of nurses, Macogay notes. On June 1, 2018, the Magnet team submitted an application containing more than 400 pages of commentary and nearly 1,000 pages of supporting evidence, followed by additional documentation as typically requested by ANCC.
In May, a team of ANCC Magnet appraisers conducted a three-day site-visit at the hospital to validate the information contained in the application. They met with front-line nursing staff, nurse leaders, physicians, other hospital staff, and patients and families. They shared their findings with a panel of ANCC Magnet program leaders, who then delivered the exciting news to Johns Hopkins All Children’s leaders and staff during the July 29 call. The commission noted three particular exemplars (demonstration of excellence): transformational leadership in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and exemplary practice in nurse satisfaction and in patient experience in the Emergency Center.
The Magnet journey has been both personal and professional for Macogay, who joined the hospital as a bedside nurse in 2008, became a nursing leader responsible for several inpatient units and was named CNO in 2018.
“This designation is a tremendous milestone in our journey,” she notes. “It reflects the hard work and tireless dedication of the thousand-plus nurses who are with us today, it honors the legacy of those who helped us reach this point and the commitment of the future nurses who will carry this designation forward. Our work doesn’t stop.”
Cherilyn Ashlock, D.N.P., R.N., NE-BC, director of professional nursing practice, joined the hospital in 2013 to help create the structures and processes that needed to be in place for this journey and then led the team that completed the application and prepared for the recent site visit. She was brimming with pride, enthusiasm and appreciation at Monday’s announcement.
“Our amazing nurses are dedicated to best practices, continued improvement and professional growth,” Ashlock says. “Magnet designation tells nurses around the country that we are an organization that values the contributions of our nurses, and tells patients and families that we are committed to excellence.”
