June 2009

June 2009

Music lntervention in the PACU - by Betty J. Easter, RN, CPAN.

I have been a proponent of nonpharmocological interventions for patient care in my postoperative care practice, e.g., repositioning, warm blankets, etc. In reading the Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing (JOPAN) over the years, I have seen articles discussing music intervention for alleviating patient discomfort from time to time. Some research showed positive effects of music, while other studies did not. Nonetheless, I wanted to be able to offer my patients music. I brought this topic up in a PACU shared governance council meeting where the Council facilitator suggested we consider doing a music research study. CVMC encourages research and evidence-based nursing practice, but I did not think of myself as a researcher; research was not a topic covered when I was in nursing school 41 years ago. As I regularly frequent our local Wal-Mart, one day I noticed a large banner stating “Community Grant” money that had been given to local community projects. I decided to explore the process required to apply for a grant. My proposal was awarded a $500 community grant that could be spent in-store for any items needed for our research project. Grant funds were used to purchase personal CD players, assorted CDs of various musical genres and storage cases.

With the assistance of Dr. Tart, Director for Research & EBP, the PACU formed the first unit-based nursing research team at CVMC. In weekly meetings with Dr. Tart, the team first read published articles and discussed the findings. Once we received IRB approval, data was collected for a period of five months. Dr. Tart helped with the data analysis. Last October, an abstract was submitted to the 29th Annual ASPAN Conference, and in January 2009 we were notified of its acceptance. Carolyn Starnes, MSN, RN, CNM, CPAN and I attended national conference in Washington D.C. this past April. Many conference participants viewed the poster including one of the JOPAN co-editors, Vallire Hooper, MSN, RN, CPAN, FAAN. She invited me to write a guest article about how I went about securing funding for our music project, and she encouraged us to submit an article describing the music research study and our findings. The manuscript and guest article were submitted to JOPAN earlier this month.

Although I had no prior experience with research, the journey was very rewarding. With Dr. Tart’s patient guidance and encouragement, I overcame my inadequacies and fears of being overwhelmed by the entire process. Our PACU now provides music to any patient who chooses to listen to it postoperatively. The Wal-Mart grant provided us the avenue to obtain the needed items without any expenditure by our facility. With budget constraints, it’s important that nurses continue to look for innovative ways to provide the best care possible to our patients. Research and evidence-based practice are the hallmarks of quality care, but nurses must be innovative and proactive in choosing the path to achieve this goal. §

Clinical expertise, one evidence-based practice component , is enhanced when a nurse earns an advanced degree and/or speciality certification. We tip our hats to these staff recently furthering their professional training.

Diana Wakefield, RN, CPN recently passed the examination for Certified Pediatric Nurse.

Persida Popan, RN, ONC has earned her orthopaedic certification.

Amber Minton, NA passed the Emergency Medical Technician-Intermediate (EMT-I) exam. Amber serves as a nursing assistant and unit secretary on Medical.

Congratulations and well wishes to the following 2009 nursing graduates successfully passing the NCLEX recently. Jessica Baez, RN, Surgical; Natalie Bowman, RN, Emergency Department; Tracey Burrell, RN, Pediatrics; Mary Goodson, RN, Medical; Alisa Herman, RN, Operating Room; Leah Kittrell, RN, Birthing Center; Rachel Nadcau, RN, Ortho/Neuro; Judy Parker, RN, Oncology; Rachel Porter, RN, Level I Nursery; Denise Trivette, RN,Medical.

IPR Receives CARF Accreditation. CVMC recently received its fourth 3-year Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) accreditation, the highest accreditation level designated. Stroke, trauma and orthopaedic patients receive comprehensive nursing and therapy care at CVMC - the only CARF-accredited rehabilitation program in the region. During the rigorous on-site review, several departments and processes were commended as exemplary. Organizational Learning was recognized for providing extensive support to IPR, and the Human Resources Department for supporting education, competency assessment and credentialling of clinicians. Moreover, the hospital’s infection prevention policy of admitting patients to isolation rooms from outside facilities was viewed as a proactive way to protect staff, current patients and other persons from potential hospital-acquired infections. Susan Bumgarner, MSN, RNC, NEA-BC, Administrator Medical Surgical Nursing states “the teamwork in this endeavor was phenomenal." §

Cast Your Vote for CVMC's EBP Logo. Fourteen entries were submitted in the recent EBP logo contest sponsored by the Research & EBP Council. With the assistance of Elizabeth Putnam, BA, former CVMC Graphics Analyst, the Council chose the logos judged to best convey the meaning of evidence-based practice that would conform well to different types of media presentation. The four finalists logos will be displayed on the service floor bulletin board near the employee pharmacy soon. Be sure to take a look at each image. Housewide voting will take place in July. The Research & EBP Council wishes to sincerely thank all CVMC creative employees who participated in the contest! §

UNC-G Outreach Program Celebrates Milestone. On 11 May 2009, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro hosted a reception to celebrate the success of their Hickory Outreach Program. Wake Forest University's Northwest Area Health Education Center (NWAHEC) and Catawba Valley Medical Center have partnered with UNC-G for 25 years in this endeavor. Gloria Hemphill, BSN, RN, OCN, one of two former student presenters, spoke engagingly about her BSN experience. CVMC was recognized for providing their facilities as well as for the support of the Patient Care Administration. Ginger Biggerstaff, MSN, RN-BC was recognized for her efforts in working with UNC-G personnel. Donald Kautz, PhD, RN, CNRN, CRRN-A, current program director, recognized Rebecca Tart, PhD for the Department for Research and Evidence-Based Practice/UNC-G collaboration in the nursing research course. This endeavor resulted in real-world research and evidence-based practice experiences for the nursing students . Do you want to learn more about the UNC-G Hickory BSN or MSN Outreach Program? If so, drop by the AHEC Library on 1st floor and retrieve a brochure. §

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Kimberly Rudisill, RN,

Operating Room

“I became interested in EBP when I was involved in a surgical counting presentation in the OR. At the same time, I was taking a UNC-G research class being team taught by Dr. Kautz and Dr. Tart,” states Kimberly Rudisill, RN. “I learned many new resources and tools from the course, e.g., MSExcel statistical formulas, to use in data analysis.” The research students collected and analyzed data as a part of the course requirements, and made presentations of their findings to the class at the end of the semester.

“This experience taught me that research is not as easy as just finding a research study on the internet and deciding to implement what the study suggests for evidence-based practice. You have to get involved with your own [patient] care and implement pilot studies to see what the best practice truly is because some studies can be misleading. This was an awesome learning experience … about how to make improvements or changes to the current practice.”

During this time, Kimberly contacted Dr. Rebecca Tart, Director of the Department for Research and Evidence-Based Practice expressing interest in CVMC’s Research and EBP Council. Kimberly Yates, MSN/MHA, RN-BC, Council Chair for fiscal year 2009-2010, remembers “being impressed with Kimberly as a new graduate.” Ann Moore, MSN, RN-BC, CEN recalls that in her guest visit to the Council, Kimberly volunteered to assist with an upcoming ‘Let’s Get Cooking with EBP’ class being scheduled! In May 2009, Kimberly officially joined the Research and EBP Council at the hospital. She also serves as chairperson of the OR Performance Improvement Team for universal protocol and chairs the OR Employee Activity Council. This latter committee groups OR staff together for community service to promote team building and the PEP program.

A 11A–11P charge nurse, Kimberly plans to sit for the CNOR certification exam in September 2009. She is cell-saver certified and would like to become an ACLS/PALS instructor. Kimberly is enrolled in UNC-G’s BSN program, and thinks she would like to become a CRNA in the future. In her spare time, Kimberly is mom to a 12 year-old teacup poodle. §