The Profession of Nursing is built on a platform of trust and advocacy for every patient. Nurses are at the core of every decision made for a patient. They are excellent evaluators and communicators of data. They are critical thinkers who use compounded data to evaluate and coordinate plans of care.
Nursing is a profession that has evolved over hundreds of years into its current existence. It has survived some of the most challenging and darkest times in our history. Nurses are survivors and leaders during turbulent changing times. They are the professional that we trust and want near us when healthcare needs arise. They are leaders.
It is proven that the care provided by a nurse to a patient is one of the most highly correlated indicators of satisfaction in the entire patient’s stay. This is no accident. This is because it is the nurse who is responsible for assuring the patient and their family is cared for twenty for hours a day and in just about every inpatient and outpatient setting there is.
Nurses have become extremely adaptable and creative professionals. They have also increased their areas of responsibility by multiple folds. While the patient receives care from numerous colleagues, it is the nurse who must be assured that care is fully coordinated and the patient is safe and as comfortable as possible.
For all the reasons mentioned and a hundred more, it is the nurse who must display a sense of accountability to each and every patient. Being accountable is the method by which a nurse fulfills that level of trust with a patient. Sustaining that level of accountability, removing any variability builds that trust level even further.
The St. David’s Healthcare Partnership embraces a mission statement, values, goals, and behavioral standards that are expectations of everyone. Tirelessly, our team works to assure every patient receives the best care possible every day to every patient with a spirit of warmth friendliness and personal pride.
This partnership has the finest nurses, second to none. Sustained and unwavering accountability, connection to purpose, and the sense of professional accomplishment drive this team of dynamic professionals. Being a nurse means being accountable, it always has.
Sally A. Gillam RN, BSN, MAHS
Chief Nursing Officer
St. David’s South Austin Medical Center