| Home  

| Contact Us

|    Search 

• Quick Search
• Advanced Search

|    FAQ 

• What is a Nurse?
• How can I tranfer my license to Florida?
• Where can I find information on Loans and Scholarships?
• Additional FAQ's

  About the FCN 

• Who we are
• Our History
• Vision and Mission
• Annual Report
• Board of Directors
• Directions to our Office
• Legislative Mandates
• Staff

Internet Resources |  

Retention & Recruitment Funded Projects
Projects Awarded - 2010
Funding Total = $ 34,517

Orlando Health
Project Title: Assessment of needs of older nurses and factors that would delay retirement: A mixed methods study
Project Summary: The FCN reports that the average age of Florida RN's in 2009 was 47.7 years and inadequate new nurse replacements exist as they retire. Delaying retirement by two years could lessen the impact of future nurse shortages in Florida. Studies have found barriers to retain older nurses in the workforce and proposed interventions that postpone retirement. Project: Mixed methods study of near retirement nurses (>=45) in acute care in a large multi-center hospital in Central Florida. Purpose: Validate evidence on factors influencing retention, keeping nurses in the workforce longer, and develop retention strategies for near-retirement nurses.

Final Project Outcome:
Researchers found that multiple factors influenced the ability to stay in bedside nursing, including physical demands of the job, personal health, physical work environment, emotional demands, heavy workload, long work hours and lack of respect from management. Research question two identified those factors that would help retain nurses at the bedside longer. Findings included improvements in and control of schedules, increased nurses and support staff, equipment adjuncts, changes to the physical work environment, improvements in compensation and benefits, and professional role alternatives. Research question three addressed recent factors that had influenced older nurses' retirement plans. The findings included the national economic downturn, retirement plan losses, personal financial situation, reduction in benefits and concerns about family members' health and insurance.

Healthcare and nurse leaders have an opportunity to improve working conditions, such that older nurses will want to stay in the workforce longer. Nurses desire more flexibility in scheduling and recognition for longevity in a rapidly changing world. Improving manager competency in areas addressed, such as listening and respect, is something that would be important for improving the work environment for any nurse, but seemed to be important to the nurses participating in this survey. These improvements are not costly, and may influence an older nurse's decision on whether to stay or go. If these things are not addressed now, once the economy improves and financial concerns diminish, older nurses may leave the profession, creating a critical gap in knowledge, experience, and manpower for nursing.

---

Tampa General Hospital
Project Title: Improving Work-Life Balance for Nurse Managers
Project Summary: The goal of the project is to reduce stress levels of front-line managers in an acute care hospital by increasing efficiency skills and job satisfaction. A well-balanced nurse manager needs to be both physically and mentally present on the unit to impact staff retention. The project includes three components: 1) implementation of a "Balance Buddy" system 2) efficiency training sessions and 3) a formal training session on managing work-life balance. The project will be evaluated by using the McCloskey Mueller Satisfaction Scale, Work Hours survey, RN Retention Interviews and RN turnover rates.

Final Project Outcome:
At the time of final reporting, researchers observed a marked increase in the use of lifting and turning equipment on each pilot unit as well as a 25% reduction in the number of Workers Compensation claims of injuries resulting from lifting and turning patients. Additionally, when surveyed about their satisfaction with the STEP program, staff on the three pilot units reported they were extremely satisfied (30%), satisfied (61%) or neither satisfied nor dissatisfied (9%).

After successfully implementing the program on the first pilot unit, project leaders decided that all staff (PCTs and nurses) would benefit from the training. They found that by having a team approach to lifting/turning patients (instead of a hospital-based team), there is better team engagement in the lifting process (the team works together), there is little to no wait time when a patient needs to be turned/transferred, equipment is utilized frequently and more effectively, and there is increased knowledge about safe techniques and equipment.

Project leaders were challenged to establish a plan to educate all PCTs and nurses on the day and night shifts. Training of the PCTs remained under the direction of the Physical Therapy Department. Although not originally part of the training plan, they decided to include the Unit Educators in the training. The Unit Educators conducted the training of the nurses on their unit. Project leaders also added Champions on each unit who assisted the educators with the training and served as a reminder and motivator to the staff to use safe lifting/transferring techniques and equipment.

Project leaders also reported that implementation of this program required a change in the culture on the units and that support from the Vice President of Patient Services, Nursing Director and Unit Managers were critical in the project's success.

---

Nursing Consortium of South Florida
Project Title: South Florida Nurse Leadership Academy
Project Summary: The South Florida Nurse Leadership Academy will be a nurse leadership development program, coordinated by the Nursing Consortium of South Florida. Its purpose is to build a community of highly competent nurse leaders for the richly diverse South Florida region. The program will leverage best practices of current employer provided or employer sponsored leadership development programs, prepare participants for national certification, and increase the community ties of participants through structured educational, social, and service opportunities.

Final Project Outcome:
Though a funding shortfall impacted the original launch timeline, the project continued to move forward and enrollment of an initial cohort was expected for fall 2011 and will be piloted at Nova Southeastern University.

Two key challenges faced by the steering committee were building a sustainable financial model and identifying cost-effective testing services. While remaining committed to the vision of a distributed program offered by multiple education institutions, with a subcontracted testing component, and centralized coordination of a community service element and employer mentoring, the refinement of each aspect of the program and the integration of each to the others can best be accomplished with a single educational provider; especially in light of the Consortium's limited financial resources.

With much of the program development completed and remaining hurdles being addressed, the region's chief nursing officers were slated to convene in mid-year 2011 for a presentation on the program concept and to encourage their sponsoring of candidates for the initial cohort.

---

St. Joseph's Hospital
Project Title: Unit-Based Lift Resource Team: Improving the Nursing Environment
Project Summary: The risk for back-related injuries necessitates the need to develop a safer environment for nursing care. As the age of our nursing workforce and rate of patient obesity continue to rise, so does the risk of injury while turning and transferring patients safely. Nursing injuries can impact rates of workers' compensation claims, restricted workloads, and lost work time. This project will pilot a unit-based lift resource team who will receive training on lifting methods and equipment. Team members will provide nurses with assistance to turn and transfer patients, thus reducing the risk of injury and increasing nursing safety and satisfaction.

Final Project Outcome:
Members of the Patient Care Leadership Council (PCLC) were given the opportunity to participate in the Work-Life Balance Program by first participating in a pre~survey using the McCloskey Mueller Satisfaction Scale® (MMSS) to establish a baseline of job satisfaction. Secondly, they were given work hour expectations from senior nursing leaders and the Chief Operating Officer of the organization. They were asked to participate in a "Balance Buddy" system where each manager identifies a peer to assist in cross coverage of their unit or department. Managers were encouraged to utilize their ability to flex their work hours, utilize their work-at-home days and truly disconnect from work when on vacation.

A formal educational session on "Better Work - Life Balance" was conducted at an offsite location by Susan Gaddis, PhD, the "Communication Doctor." The session discussed communication strategies focusing on work-life balance. Each member attending the program also received a book on speed reading.

In addition, eight sessions focusing on efficiency were conducted during the monthly PCLC meetings. The sessions were 20-30 minutes in length and focused on utilizing technology to improve personal efficiency. Ongoing monitoring of the project was accomplished through the use of a dashboard. The MMSS was administered in February with a 72% response rate. It was readministered in December with a 45% response rate. Data was analyzed for descriptive statistics using SPSS. The results showed that PCLC respondents mean score was less than "satisfied" in four of the eight categories; in December the mean scores of all eight categories were above the "satisfied" mark.

This project was a component of a larger effort to improve workplace satisfaction of frontline patient care managers. Initially, the project was to focus on nurse managers only but was expanded to all patient care managers. The retreat, speed reading book and efficiency sessions all received positive feedback as useful strategies to improve work life balance. Over half of all participants evaluating the efficiency sessions are utilizing at least some of the strategies and tips. Although there was no improvement on the reduction of hours worked or leaving on time, it is encouraging that the job satisfaction scores improved as well as the number of days that they "stress" about work-home conflicts was reduced.

---

Palm Beach Community College
Project Title: Home Health Specialization for Professional Nurses
Project Summary: Home Health Specialization for Professional Nurses (HHSPN) is a nurse retention initiative of formal home health training and placement for the mature, licensed, registered nurse who has left, or is leaving, the nursing profession. Curricula includes didactic and psychomotor training in point of care testing, management of central intravenous catheters and ports, medication administration, and specific home health nuances to include insurance reimbursement, patient assessment and documentation, and safety in the home. Strategic recruitment efforts will attract the mature nurse to enter the home health sector due to working conditions which will allow for autonomy, reduced hours, and reduced workloads.

Final Project Outcome:
Project leaders developed an evidence-based curricula and formal training targeted towards the mature nurse. The curriculum included both didactic and psychomotor training in a range of clinical areas, including point of care testing, medication administration, Medicare billing, and the specific nuances of home healthcare. The Course on Home Health for Professional Nurses is fully developed as hybrid distance education course using a combination of face-to-face classes with independent study.

Targeted marketing materials were developed and outreach efforts were implemented to recruit experienced licensed Registered Nurses over the age of 45. Due to a loss of state funding, full implementation of the course is currently delayed. The course will be valuable to current registered nurses who desire a change in work environment rather than leaving the profession. Additionally, there was demonstrated interest among home health agencies interested in hiring new graduates who complete this course due to its comprehensiveness in scope and content.