Magnet recognition has both benefits and limitations. For instance in a hospital that is magnet recognized the nurses experience a better level of job satisfaction. This is also in terms of better compensation as well as better conditions of worker. Further, the hospital values its nurses, supports their research based works and thus helping them enhance their professional skills. The hospital also has better recruitment and retention of nurses. By doing so, they get the best professionals and hence service delivery is enhanced.
With reduced nurse turnover and efficiency of their operations, the hospital saves a lot of finances. In every organization, employee turnover is costly since it means that the organization will spend more on recruiting and training new employees. Magnet recognition enables the hospital increase its productivity and have a competitive advantage. In addition, the level of patient satisfaction is high and thus the hospital has a good reputation. However, applying for magnet recognition is challenging. It is an expensive and time consuming process.
Introduction
Magnet recognition also referred to as the magnet program is a nursing program that recognizes and rewards organizations that offer heath care services. These organizations are recognized where they exhibit excellence in their services. Further, the health care organization should have an environment which can sustain the practice of nursing, support development of nurses and in a professional way. Magnet recognition has both benefits and shortcomings
Nurses should consider the benefits of magnet recognition and thus seek for magnet certification. There are other people who criticize magnet recognition and argue that this is just a promotion tool for hospitals. Magnet recognition is beneficial and thus applying it is very essential for the running of any health care organization.
Pros of magnet recognition
A magnet hospital benefits not only the hospital but the nurses and patients as well. In a magnet hospital, the job satisfaction level is high for the nurses. Satisfaction at the place of work is one of the key factors that leads to people offering efficient services. This is because they will feel that it is part of them to offer health care services to their patients. Where nurses are not satisfied, they will work simply because it is a profession. Otherwise, nurses may consider offering health care services as a calling.
Lack of job satisfaction also leads to nurses leaving the nursing profession and seeking for alternative jobs. That is why there is pressure on the profession of nursing in America.In a magnet hospital, the rate of nurse turnover is minimized. This is because the nurses will be involved in the operations of the hospital. For instance, the hospital shapes the nursing practice to be research based (Barbara, 2011).
Because of the support that they get for these hospitals that they work for and the fact that the hospital promotes the enhancement of their profession, they will be less likely to leave the hospital. Therefore, the nurses will not find any reasons to leave their hospitals. This is also facilitated by the fact that hospitals that are magnet recognized offer their nurses a better environment for work. Research has proven this. For example, in 2008, among the 11 listed healthcare organizations that were best to work for, seven were magnet recognized.
Communication is very important for the progress of any organization. Magnet recognition leads to enhanced communication. This is communication that is effected between the nurses themselves, the nurses and other hospital workers. With such good communication, the hospital is able to attain the best outcomes for their health care services. Furthermore, where there is good communication, the work environment will be good for the staff and this means increase in their productivity (Ulrich, et.al., 2007).
Communication is also essential since it makes the process of solving problems better and reduces organizational conflicts. For instance, the needs of the nurses will be communicated to the management and thus there will be limited chances of conflicts arising. Also, because they can freely communicate, when they encounter problems, they will be able to forward them and this ensures that the organization solves problems before they mature.Following magnet recognition, the nursing leaders will value their staff nurses.
This will thus ensure that the nurses feel that they are part of the hospital (Lundmark, 2008). They will also find the need to associate more with the health care organization that they work for. Value is created by involving the nurses in the operations of the hospital. These involve important aspects like decision making for example of purchasing new hospital instruments. Since it is the nurses who work at the ground level of interacting with the patients and using these machines, it is them who can best give information on what needs to be done so as to improve the service delivery of the hospitals.
Thus, they should be involved in making such important decisions. A magnet hospital involves its nurses. Furthermore, just like in any other field of service delivery, people will work better towards the implementation of decisions that they were part of making.Hospitals that are magnet recognized have higher compensations for their nurses. This is a motivating factor for the nurses. Furthermore, such hospitals enjoy the benefit of better recruitment of nurses and their retention (Stubenrauch, 2010). Recruitment is one of the key factors towards the improvement of any organization including health care organizations.
With magnet recognition, the hospital stands out to attract the best nurses. This is because the nurses are assured of their good working conditions and benefits. By attracting the best nurses, the hospital stands to have better health care services. These are quality services and they are services that each patient wants. By offering quality services, the hospitals have higher chances of being recognized among the best hospitals. For instance, in the 2009 21 list of top medical centers in America, fifteen among them were hospitals that were magnet recognized.
Due to the improved and quality of services, magnet recognition leads to the hospital having a competitive advantage over other health care organizations (Morgan, 2009). This further leads to the hospital having a good reputation. An hospital that is magnet recognized will benefit by having financial savings. These are savings both in terms of cost avoidance and cost savings. This is because of the reduced wastes. Wastage is one of the ways in which organizations incur unnecessary wastes. Further, due to the good communication, breakdowns are reported and dealt with in good time.
Since the nurses have a feeling of being part of the hospital, they will also be careful in handling equipment and materials within the hospital. Though nursing is a delicate profession, human beings can have carefree behaviors especially where they are not comfortable. Thus, with the benefits that they get, the nurses in magnet recognized hospitals will tend to be more attached to their work.In every organization, customers are very important. In hospitals, their customers are the patients. Magnet hospitals have better levels of patient satisfaction. The nurse to patient ratios are also improved. Therefore, one nurse does not have to attend to many nurses.
High nurse to patient ratios have been shown to have diverse consequences. For instance, some patients may be left unattended to especially incase of emergencies. Nowadays, consumers of health care have become sophisticated and educated. They therefore discriminate health care organizations that do not offer them quality and satisfactory services. Consumers are also choosing their own health care providers. Because of improved services at magnet hospitals, they are benefiting by having consumers choose them over other hospitals.
Cons of magnet recognition
There has been questions of if and how well magnetic recognition works. For instance, critics argue that there is no concrete evidence that the nurses who work in magnet hospitals are better than those who work in non-magnet hospitals. Further, it is argued that magnetic recognition is just a nurse empowerment illusion. These are the challenges that an hospital will face when applying for magnetic recognition.The main disadvantage in applying for magnet recognition is that it is not easy.
It is a process that requires labor and takes a long time. There are also specified standards that an organization as to meet so that they can be magnet recognized. Further, though it may take a very long time, the application can also be rejected. It is awarded for only four years after which the hospital has to reapply. It is also an expensive process since the AANC (American Nurses Credentialing Center) collects various fees for an hospital to be magnet recognized. Therefore, the process requires a big amount of resources, money and a lot of time to improve the conditions of the hospital.
Conclusion
The hospitals that have been magnet recognized present many benefits to the hospital itself, nurses and consumers. It is recommended that hospitals apply for magnet recognition so as to improve their services. Magnet recognition is recognized by the AANC thus it is a legal process. Despite the fact that it is an expensive process and takes a long time, magnet recognition is advantageous in many ways. Further, each organization wants to have a good competitive advantage and offer quality services to its consumers and this is achieved by magnet recognition. Magnet recognition is beneficial and thus applying it is very essential for the running of any health care organization.
References
Lundmark, V.A. (2008). Magnet Environments for Professional Nursing Practice. Retrieved on March 16, 2011 from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2667/.
Morgan, S.H. (2009). Journal of Nursing Care Quality: Magnet Recognition: Nursing Excellence and Quality: The Magnet™ Model as a Framework for Excellence. Vol 24 (2). 105-108.
Stubenrauch, J.M. (2010). American journal of nursing: Working Conditions at Magnet Hospitals. Vol 110 (11). 16-17.
Ulrich, B.T. et.al., (2007). Journal of Nursing Administration: Magnet Status and Registered Nurse Views of the Work Environment and Nursing as a Career. Vol 37 (5). 212-220.
Wallace, B. (2011). American journal of nursing: The Magnet journey of a community hospital. Vol 111 (1). 30-31.
