Houston Methodist Willowbrook News
Sheila Fata
Vice President & Chief Nursing Officer
Destination Magnet!
September was a big month for us as we welcomed the Commission on Magnet Designation to our hospital for our official Magnet site survey! This survey was the culmination of several years of preparation and hard work as we destined ourselves to be leaders in nursing care, discovery, and innovation. Today, I want provide a brief “report” on the survey and recognize the outstanding work of our entire nursing team which led to our success. As you may know, our Magnet Journey began back in 2010. Since that time we have worked to become an organization where the Magnet principles are central to our daily operation. From shared governance and nurses leading organizational change to producing our first formal nursing research studies, nurses at Houston Methodist Willowbrook Hospital (HMWB) have answered the call to take nursing in our hospital to the next level. Our Journey presented challenges, which were overcome by the dedication of our nursing team to the Magnet vision. On the first day of our site visit, we greeted the survey team with a cheering army of hospital staff in Methodist blue, kicking off three days of interviews, panel discussions, meal sessions and hospital tours. The survey began with a review of updated documents on patient satisfaction and nursing quality, then moved to interviews with our hospital leadership, directors, managers, and staff nurses. By the end of the week, nearly 150 nurses participated in discussions directly with the survey team. Many of our staff also had the opportunity to join the survey team in one of 13 private meals, giving them the opportunity to talk with the survey team and their colleagues about HMWB, patient care, and the future of nursing at our hospital. The surveyors were also welcomed to 24 patient care units for tours by enthusiastic nurses. The three days of the survey were certainly a whirlwind! The surveyors posed some challenging questions to our staff during their visit, such as: How would your hospital contribute to the “Community of Magnet” if designated? Can you meet the expectation to publish the great work we’re doing? How would Magnet designation impact your work as nurses? By the end of their visit, the surveyors had only positive feedback for our team. They praised the nurses for their engagement and ownership of the quality outcomes and patient experiences in their units. One surveyor had the opportunity to speak to a mother whose child was in our NICU. Her story about our staff’s care, attention to her and her baby’s needs, and true personal experience brought the surveyor to tears. They remarked that they loved knowing about our hospital, just in case they were visiting Houston and needed a hospital. As they left, they said it was one of the easiest surveys they had done.
Pictured from l-r: Marcia Malone-Tedder, Dana Scott, Artie Saxena, Barbara Drummond-Huth (Surveyor), Banne Miers (Surveyor), Janet Hanley (Surveyor), Sheila Fata, Shari Costigan
6 Methodist Nurse
Our entire hospital has every reason to be proud. While we still await a final decision based on the survey team’s recommendations, a final review by the ANCC, and a vote of the Board of Commissioners, we can relish in the excellence in professional nursing that resonates throughout our hospital.