Nurses Week: RWJ Hamilton's Nurses Make a Difference Every Day
Hospital's Highly Specialized Nurses Provide Top-Notch Care

Being on call to administer to the needs of others 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year—that's what it means to be a nurse. Always observing, always learning, always serving—that's the hallmark of the nursing profession. During the week of May 6-12, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton (RWJ Hamilton) joins the American Nurses Association in celebrating National Nurses Week 2008. RWJ Hamilton embraces this year's theme, "Nurses: Making a Difference Every Day," by encouraging its nurses to be educated, engaged and passionate about their chosen roles and specialties.

Front row: Michele Hunt, RN, CNOR; Sharon Brown, RN, MSN; Susan Hermida, RN, MSN, GCNS-BC, CWCN. Back row: Michal Glass, RN, BSN, IBCLC; Dawn Hutchinson, RN, DGRN; Cynthia Lewis-Diaz, RN, MHA; Amy German, RN, BSN, OCN; and Alberto Rodrigues, RN, BSN.

"Nursing is a rewarding career that grows with you," says Sharon Brown, RN, RWJ Hamilton's Assistant Vice President of Nursing. "Within nursing there are many specialties that allow nurses to receive advanced training and certification. We are very proud that our nurses continually seek to educate themselves about the latest advancements, technology and research, and we support them in their efforts." Brown herself is a role model for continuing education—a registered professional nurse in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, she holds a Master of Science degree in Nursing Administration and a Certification in Nursing Administration.

Providing a Higher Standard of Care
RWJ Hamilton knows the value of having highly specialized nurses and it supports them every step of the way. The hospital encourages its nurses to become certified in areas of specialty so that they can provide a higher standard of care. To be eligible for certification, nurses have to work in that job for a certain amount of time, attend continuing education and then sit for an exam. To keep their certification, they must participate in ongoing education and training.

Michal Glass, RN, BSN, IBCLC, of RWJ Hamilton's maternal-child health services department, supports specialization. "We have staff certified in many areas, including lactation, inpatient obstetrics, labor & delivery and neo-natal intensive care. When one of our nurses goes to class, takes an online course or sits for certification, she brings her knowledge back to everyone in the department. This helps our nurses stay engaged and informed and allows us to give our patients the very best care."

Discussing what certification means to her, Carol Magariello, RN, BSN, CEN, a clinical coordinator in RWJ Hamilton's Emergency Department, says, "After 15 years as an ED nurse, I chose to become certified because I wanted to validate my nursing knowledge. Now that I'm in a leadership role, it's great to be able to serve as a mentor to the newer nurses."

Educating Each Other and the Community
Highly specialized nurses are not just at the bedside—they educate other nurses within the hospital as well as members of the community. Cheryl Prall, RN, MSN, CWCN, who works in the hospital's Education department, says, "We have specialized nurse educators in our department who help train other nurses. We provide nurses with a variety of ways to learn and improve their knowledge and skills."

RWJ Hamilton Community Education Director Diann Mancuso is proud of her department's outreach. "Many of our educators have specialized certifications in a wide range of fields including holistic health, diabetes education, child birth education and emergency department care," says Mancuso. "We offer classes at the RWJ Hamilton Center for Health & Wellness, area senior centers and local businesses and state departments. Our goal is to foster a healthy community by offering the most up-to-date medical education."

Nursing Incentives Attract the Best
RWJ Hamilton provides a generous nursing benefits package that includes childcare discounts, health and dental coverage, mortgage assistance, tuition reimbursement and many educational and scholarship opportunities.

"We empower our nurses to improve their practice by participating in research, staying abreast of evidence-based practices, completing advanced degrees, obtaining certifications and using computerized documentation applications." says Brown. "In general, we strive to provide an environment that emphasizes work-life balance, recognizes achievements, supports learning and celebrates diversity."

For information about nursing opportunities at RWJ Hamilton, call 609.584.5924 or go to rwjhamilton.org.

More About RWJ Hamilton
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Hamilton (RWJ Hamilton) is the only New Jersey hospital to receive the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Located in Hamilton Township, NJ, the hospital is part of the RWJ Health System and Network and is affiliated with the University of Medicine and Dentistry New Jersey-RWJ Medical School and the Cancer Institute of New Jersey.

The RWJ Hamilton Health Care Corporation serves communities within a five-county area and includes an acute care hospital, the Cancer Institute of New Jersey Hamilton, three affiliated medical groups, seven Lakeview Child Centers, and the RWJ Hamilton Center for Health & Wellness, home of a medically-based fitness center and the hospital's extensive community education program. Over 1,900 hospital employees and 650 medical staff physicians share RWJ Hamilton's passion for Excellence Through Service. For more information, visit www.rwjhamilton.org.