SJRMC's Commitment to Magnet
The concept of "Magnet" hospitals began in the 1980s, when an American Nursing Academy study led to the identification of 41 U.S. hospitals deemed "magnetic" based on their exceptional ability to attract and retain nursing staff.
In 1991, the American Nurses Credentialing Center expanded upon those basic Magnet principles and established the Magnet Recognition Program, a process by which healthcare organizations could apply for accreditation and national recognition as centers of nursing excellence. The program has since become the ultimate benchmark by which prospective nurses can measure an organization's leadership, staff, and practice settings; and by which consumers can measure the quality of care they can expect to receive.
While striving to continually pursue and achieve Magnet status, SJRMC will undergo four steps in the application process: (1) assessment & application, (2) documentation review, (3) facility site visit, and (4) review & decision.
What Magnet means to Nurses:
- Increased nurse retention and recruitment rates
- Lower nursing turnover rates
- Higher job satisfaction rates
- Enhanced respect and acknowledgment of contributions to positive patient care outcomes
- Positive collaborative relationships
- The highest level of recognition attainable for an organization providing the services of registered professional nurses
- Stability in the team members who provide patient care
Furthermore, high quality nurses are one of the most important attributes in attracting high quality physicians to an institution, and Magnet adds to its overall success. Magnet also allows more nursing time spent on individual patients at the bedside, which helps lead to shorter hospital stays. For the entire community, Magnet exemplifies the utmost care and attention to patients as the ultimate nursing benchmark in national validation and recognition. With Magnet, everybody in the community benefits.