Frankfort, KY (November 24, 2010) - Frankfort Regional Medical Center's Intensive Care Unit (ICU) has received the Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence, an award given by the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) to recognize U.S. hospitals with the best pediatric, progressive, and adult critical care units. The recognition represents extraordinary commitment to high-quality critical care standards, and dedication to the exceptional care of patients and their families. Frankfort Regional's ICU also received the award in 2009.
The AACN launched the Beacon Award in the Fall of 2003, and the first recipients were announced in the Spring of 2004. Since then, 315 units (5%) of the estimated 6,000 Intensive Care Units in the United States have been recognized for excellence by this award. Forty-three units have received the award twice, putting Frankfort Regional's ICU in the top 1% of ICU's. Frankfort Regional's ICU is one of only three hospitals in Kentucky to receive the designation.
"Winning this award two years in a row demonstrates that our caregivers and physicians meet the highest possible standards in caring for our sickest and most vulnerable patients," said Sammie Mosier, Chief Nursing Officer. "It's a mark not only of clinical excellence, but also of our commitment to patients."
As a Beacon Award recipient, Frankfort Regional's ICU succeeded in the following areas, as measured against evidence-based national criteria:
- Recruitment and retention
- Education, training and mentoring
- Research and evidence-based practice
- Patient outcomes
- Leadership and organization ethics
- Healing environment
"Teamwork, collaboration, and a desire to deliver excellent patient care is the foundation to this unit's success," said Michelle England, Director of Critical and Progressive Care. "This unit and these nurses strive to be role models for their profession. They are autonomous, empowered and seek to improve their nursing practice at every opportunity. I am very proud to be a part of this team and all that we have accomplished and will continue to accomplish in the future."
Beacon Award units meet rigid criteria for excellence, high-quality standards and exceptional care of patients and patients' families:
- Influence and Recognition: Units that participate in the Beacon Award process help set the standards for what constitutes an excellent acute or critical care environment through the collection of evidence-based information. Patient safety and quality programs, such as the Leapfrog Group Hospital Quality and Safety Survey, consider Beacon achievement in their evaluation process.
- Credibility: Consumers, who are paying much closer attention today to quality-of-care factors with respect to their own healthcare, will take this level of recognition into consideration when choosing a hospital for care or treatment.
- Recruitment and Retention: Prospective employees will recognize a Beacon Award unit as a healthy work environment, a place where quality of care is tied directly to quality of staff. Nurses who work in these units will recognize that their skills and expertise are appreciated and valued, boosting employee morale.
For more information on the Beacon Award or AACN, visit www.aacn.org > Beacon Award for Critical Care Excellence.