YNHH gets coveted designation from nurse credentialing organization

5/25/2011 — After a rigorous, multi-year application process and four-day site visit, Yale New Haven Hospital has been granted Magnet recognition by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Yale New Haven is the largest hospital in Connecticut to achieve Magnet status, and only six percent of all American hospitals have been honored by the Magnet Recognition Program.®

"Magnet recognition both signifies nursing excellence and recognizes the collaboration between nurses and members of the healthcare team in the service of patient care and safety," explained Sue Fitzsimons, RN, PhD, senior vice president, Patient Services. "As an organization, we have worked very hard and over many years to earn this prestigious recognition."

Magnet appraisers look closely at four areas of nursing excellence in every hospital that applies for it. They rigorously examine the hospital's nursing leaders and how they empower nursing staff, the hospital's culture of safety, the quality of nursing practice, and the best practices nurses discover and share to deliver safe patient care.

"Consumers of healthcare services today are increasingly sophisticated and they are choosing hospitals that have achieved Magnet recognition," said Richard D'Aquila, executive vice president and COO. "The very process of applying for Magnet has made us a better hospital. Now that we have the official Magnet credential, the structures we've put in place, how we measure meeting patient safety goals and our increased emphasis on research all help our nurses deliver exceptional care — and that is exactly what patients expect when they choose Yale New Haven."

"We have felt that our nurses have been doing exceptionally high-quality work for some time so it is gratifying that, after a rigorous examination process, the ANCC agrees with us," said Fitzsimons, who notes that more than 2,700 nurses work at YNHH. "Our nurses are compassionate and well trained and work hard to ensure that they deliver the exceptional patient care that makes Yale New Haven a destination hospital for patients from throughout the United States."

ANCC is the world's largest and most prestigious nurse credentialing organization, and a subsidiary of the American Nurses Association.

Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH), part of Yale New Haven Health, is a nationally recognized, 1,541-bed, not-for-profit hospital serving as the primary teaching hospital for the Yale School of Medicine (YSM). Founded as the fourth voluntary hospital in the U.S. in 1826, today, YNHH has two New Haven-based campuses, and also includes Yale New Haven Children's Hospital, Yale New Haven Psychiatric Hospital and Smilow Cancer Hospital. YNHH has received Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the nation’s highest honor of nursing excellence. YNHH has a combined medical staff of about 4,500 university and community physicians practicing in more than 100 specialties. www.ynhh.org