Implications for Nursing Practice

The future of multidisciplinary simulation education at

this hospital is bright. Based onproject yearoutcomes,

the nursing, obstetric, and anesthesia departments

have agreed to assist in funding simulation as a rou-

tine addition to sta¡ education for the 2010 to 2011

year. It is anticipated that full funding of simulation by

the departments will occur in the following years.

Baby on the Way

Poster Presentation

Purpose for the Program

Baby on the Way is an innovative approach to

highlight the unique services of your hospital

to expectant couples within your community.

Proposed Change

Designed by hospital leadership and the marketing

team, the program was created to be fun, informa-

tive, and interactive. The end goal is to recruit new

patients to the hospital with subsequent conversion

of their insurance to the hospital’s health plan.

Implementation, Outcomes, and Evaluation

The program begins with a presentation of available

services and is followed by a question and answer

period from a panel of experts from throughout the

hospital. Questions from consumers are anony-

mously submitted on note cards and are answered

by the panel. Participants next enjoy an in-depth

hospital tour by childbirth educators before the Pro-

gram concludes.

Baby on the Way has had a positive a¡ect on our

hospital’s strategic plan in several arenas. Written

evaluations are collected at the end of each pro-

gram yielding the following outcomes:

� Quality: The expert panel illustrates the high

level of clinical expertise available within the

hospital. Attendees hear accurate, evidenced-

based information regarding their pregnancy

and delivery experience.

� Service: The hospital overview and tour show-

case the variety and depth of available services

that distinguish our hospital as the best place to

receive obstetric and neonatal care.

� People: An average of 71 expectant couples is

a¡ected in just 2 hours. Baby on theWay is also

a new patient recruiting tool for the physicians

participating at the event.

� Finance: The return on the investment of this

program makes it ¢scally viable with the re-

cruitment of new patients to the hospital

system and possibly the health plan.

� Growth: Since the program started, 44% of the

attendees have changed their delivery plans in

order to birth at our hospital. This is tremendous

growth for the hospital and system as a whole.

� Community: Baby on the Way is being used as a

best-practice within the rest ofour hospital system

and even by our competing hospitals in the city.

Implications for Nursing Practice

In today’s hard economic times and with the loom-

ing unknown repercussions on hospitals from the

pending health care reform, innovative strategies

must be deployed in order to keep programs and

hospitals viable. Baby on the Way is an excellent

demonstration of such a program that has resulted

in positive outcomes.

Togetherness: All Things Are Possible in a

Baby-Friendly World

Poster Presentation

Purpose for the Program

To encourage other mother-baby nurses to

implement togetherness within their own prac-

tices and places of work. By supplying nurses

with the current research in the area of to-

getherness, including rooming in and skin to

skin contact, they are able to in turn provide evi-

dence-based nursing care to patients in the

obstetric period.

Susan Davis, MSN, RN, CLE,

Administration, Sharp Mary

Birch Hospital for Women &

Newborns, San Diego, CA

Nicole Giangregorio, BS,

CLE, LCCE, Administration,

Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for

Women & Newborns, San

Diego, CA

Keywordsmarketingprogram developmentpatient educationhospital growth

Professional

Issues

Karen Goodman, MA, RN,

IBCLC, LCCE, NYU Langone

Medical Center,

New York, NY

S50 JOGNN, 40, S2-S84; 2011. DOI: 10.1111/j.1552-6909.2011.01242.x http://jognn.awhonn.org

I N N O V A T I V E P R O G R A M S

Proceedings of the 2011 AWHONN Convention

Proposed Change

To provide a continuum of togetherness, from birth

to discharge, for the mother-baby couplet.While the

goal of obstetric nurses is to keep mothers and

babies together after delivery, they are often need-

lessly separated throughout their hospital stay.

Implementation, Outcomes, and Evaluation

The poster will bring the reader through three

stages of implementing togetherness into their

nursing care. The ¢rst section will be a historical

background of togetherness and research support-

ing this practice. Readers can use this information

to provide evidence for the need to change com-

mon current hospital practices.

The second section will focus on implementation of

togetherness that can be carried out in the hospital

setting. By providing examples of change the

nurses will not need to spend the time reinventing

the wheel of togetherness, but they will be able to

identify speci¢c changes that can be applied in

their own hospitals.

The third section will encourage nurses to look at

their hospitals for readiness to change. It is easy to

get excited about providing better care for our pa-

tients, but often following through with change is

the most di⁄cult part. By examining the culture of

change in hospitals, nurses will be able to identify

barriers they may encounter as they work toward

providing togetherness in their mother baby care.

Implications for Nursing Practice

Togetherness is an important topic in mother baby

nursing care. It has been identi¢ed as a key compo-

nent in increasing exclusive breastfeeding rates

and patient satisfaction.

Implementing a Postpartum Tdap Vaccination

Program in a Military Treatment Facility

Poster Presentation

Purpose for the Program

The purpose of this poster is to discuss the

implementation of a postpartumTdap vaccina-

tion program at a military treatment facility.

Proposed Change

Pertussis is highly contagious and is spread by

inhalation of respiratory droplets or aerosols.

Newborns are a vulnerable population too

young for routine immunization. The current rec-

ommendation is to immunize household con-

tacts, health care workers, and child care workers

who are in close contact with newborns against

pertussis.

Implementation, Outcomes, and Evaluation

Development of a multidisciplinary immunization

program that included the training of sta¡ mem-

bers, creation of policy and procedures for

immunization administration, ensuring competency

of sta¡, and development of patient education ma-

terials. Following the initiation of the immunization

program the Tdap administration rate was 80%.

Within 2 months the administration rate has contin-

ued sustainment at 80%.

Implications for Nursing Practice

As new issues in women’s and children’s health

arise, nurses must be prepared to quickly respond

to the challenge. Development and implementation

of the Tdap program provides an algorithm for

future needs.

Gladys Vallespir Ellett, MA,

RN, LCCE, NYU Langone

Medical Center,

New York, NY

Keywordstogethernessrooming-inskin to skin care

Professional

Issues

Andrea DeSanto, RNC, BSN,

MSN, CNS-BC, Maternal In-

fant Nursing Department,

Naval Medical Center San

Diego, San Diego, CA

Keywordswhooping coughpertussisTdappost-partum immunizations

Professional

Issues

JOGNN 2011; Vol. 40, Supplement 1 S51

DeSanto, A. I N N O V A T I V E P R O G R A M S

Proceedings of the 2011 AWHONN Convention