Margarita's Corner
Dear Colleagues:
Did you know that according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the Merck Company Foundation, by the year 2030 approximately 20% of the US population (71 million people) will be over the age of 65 years? The patient population on these units is one that challenges each nurse to be skillful, knowledgeable and compassionate in every interaction with both the patient and the family. In our 8th edition of the UC San Diego Journal of Nursing the Psychiatric units are showcased and display how important the nurse’s caring role is to this patient population.
UC San Diego is a NICHE (Nurses Improving Care for Health System Elders) designated hospital that is working to create a more senior friendly patient care and environment. To get a great example of how the psychiatric nurses are going beyond typical methods of treatment be sure to read about our Healing Touch therapy taking place in the units and our Senior Behavioral Health Healing garden which offers a tranquil place for both the patients and families of these units but to all the staff here at UC San Diego. This is a perfect example of how nurses can heal through alternative methods and use nature to improve mental, physical, cognitive, behavioral and social health. Another fact you will learn in this journal is that the UC San Diego Functional Assessment Scale (UFAS) was recently developed as an instrument of measuring the patient’s ability to function with everyday tasks. This assessment scale was created by the Department of Psychiatry team consisting of nurses, psychiatrists and psychologists representing our three psychiatric units (Neuro Behavioral Medical Unit, Senior Behavioral Health and Child and Adolescents Psychiatric Services). I love hearing of this type of innovation from our staff!
Once again, UC San Diego Health System is ranked among the nation's best in U.S. News & World Report's 23rd annual "America's Best Hospitals" issue. UC San Diego Health System has been among the top hospitals in this ranking for 19 years. Also, big congratulations to our physicians and staff for receiving an "A" Hospital Safety Score, the highest level of recognition by The Leapfrog Group, which is a consortium of public and private purchasers of employee health coverage. Thank you for your commitment to patient safety and making this achievement possible.
I hope you enjoyed yourselves at our 2012 Nurses Week events this May as we tried something new with the Gourmet Food Trucks! These events received excellent reviews and it sounds like this will become an annual event! It was such a pleasure to award 162 scholarships to our nursing staff this year along with 56 awards for Nursing Excellence including our new Nurse of the Year Award to Cheryl Kosists. Congratulations are also in order for Christine Geniza who is the unit award winner for NBMU, Rebecca Caruso for CAPS and Sharyn Wilensky for SBH. These nurses are true examples of nurses who embody Jean Watson’s carative factors which address the mind, body and soul of the patient.
Recently, we invited all of our staff members to our first All Staff Event and we explored how each of us makes a valuable contribution that significantly impacts our outcomes. The Clinical Strategic Plan was also discussed so that everyone has a clear understanding of our roadmap for the future. This event was well attended and we hope that you enjoyed the guest speaker, Simon Bailey, as he shared how we can release the brilliance within us to be the absolute best we can be! In these articles you will learn more about the nurses within our psychiatric units and the brilliance they are bringing to the bedside every day.
Sincerely,
Margarita Baggett RN
MSN Chief Nursing Officer
Margarita Baggett RN MSN
Our CNO, and interim COO, Margarita Baggett, RN, MSN, is a highly accomplished nursing leader with extensive experience in quality management, service excellence, staff recruitment and retention and regulatory affairs.
Ms. Baggett, a Wharton Fellow from the Nurse Executive Management Program, has a Masters of Science from Adelphi University and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Molloy College.
In her role as Chief Nursing Officer, Ms Baggett provides leadership and direction for the nursing staff at both of UC San Diego Health System's hospitals, and has responsibility for a number of professional and patient care services.
Margarita will address the staff here on the website regarding items she would like to communicate to staff.