Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center has again attained Magnet® recognition as part of the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Magnet Recognition Program.
This voluntary credentialing program for hospitals recognizes excellence in nursing. The credential is the highest honor an organization can receive for professional nursing practice.
“Magnet recognition is a tremendous honor and reflects our commitment to delivering the highest quality of care to this community,” said Heidi Crooks, interim chief nurse executive at UCLA Health. “To earn Magnet recognition twice in the past was a great accomplishment and an incredible source of pride for our nurses. Our achievement of this credential for an additional four years underscores the foundation of excellence and values that drives our entire staff to strive harder each day to meet the healthcare needs of the people we serve.”
Magnet recognition has become the gold standard for nursing excellence and is taken into consideration when the public judges healthcare organizations. In fact, U.S. News & World Report’s annual showcase of “America’s Best Hospitals” includes Magnet recognition in its ranking criteria for quality of inpatient care.
To achieve initial Magnet recognition, organizations must pass a rigorous and lengthy process that demands widespread participation from leadership and staff. The process begins with the submission of an electronic application, followed by written documentation demonstrating qualitative and quantitative evidence regarding patient care and outcomes. If scores from the written documentation fall within a range of excellence, an on-site visit will occur to thoroughly assess the applicant. After this rigorous onsite review process, the Commission on Magnet will review the completed appraisal report and vote to determine whether Magnet recognition will be granted.
An organization seeking to reapply for Magnet recognition must provide documented evidence of how Magnet concepts, performance, and quality were sustained and improved over the four-year period since the hospital received its most recent recognition.
In particular, the Magnet model is designed to provide a framework for nursing practice, research and measurement of outcomes. Through this framework, ANCC can assess applicants across a number of components and dimensions to gauge an organization’s nursing excellence. The foundation of this model is composed of various elements deemed essential to delivering superior patient care. These include the quality of nursing leadership and coordination and collaboration across specialties, as well as processes for measuring and improving the quality and delivery of care.
“UCLA nurses have a passion for being the best in the world,” said Cathy Ward, chief nursing officer for the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. “The Magnet Recognition Program continues to raise the bar for excellence in nursing and inspires us to pursue that goal every day.”
Being recognized as a Magnet facility for the third time is a great achievement for UCLA as it continues to proudly belong to the Magnet community—a select group of 420 healthcare organizations out of nearly 6,000 U.S. healthcare organizations. Hospitals must reapply for Magnet recognition every four years based on adherence to Magnet concepts and demonstrated improvements in patient care and quality.
For more information on nursing at UCLA, please visit www.nursing.uclahealth.org.
