Medical Surgical Nursing at UTMB comprises 216 acute care beds. The department usually runs at greater than 90% occupancy and has almost 300 full-time equivalent positions currently filled.
Our current focus is on building practice and developing expert leadership and mentoring amongst care providers and management. A medical surgical clinical nurse specialist and a medical surgical clinical educator help to foster this development across the department. Additional unit support is available through our full time Wound and Ostomy nurse.
To fulfill these goals, we have several programs that are ongoing at this time. Our medical telemetry/family and community medicine units are engaged in developing their expertise in telemetry. New competencies have been developed and opportunities to work with experienced monitoring technicians have been arranged. Staff have attended classes in the Education Lab regarding Code 99 and Dysrhythmias.
In general medicine the focus has been on developing expertise in the care of the diabetic patient. The unit staff have collaborated with other departments and are offering ongoing education and competency development to ensure that the diabetic patient at UTMB is assured of optimal care.
The neurology/neurosurgery units on 6CD have embarked upon a 5-year plan that includes building practice, increasing the number of clinically advanced nurses and nurses who are certified in this specialty.
Other units that are continuing to develop expert nursing practice include renal transplant, dialysis, plastics, rehabilitation, orthopedics, plastics, gynecologic oncology, hematology, oncology, otolaryngology, urology, and general surgery.
Back to Initiating Evidence-Based, Data-Driven Change in a Medical Surgical Nursing Department
Back to 14th International Nursing Research Congress
Sigma Theta Tau International
10-12 July 2003