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2016 Best Nursing Team Runner-Up
Children’s
National Health
System
An educated team of NICU
nurses established a strong
breast milk culture
OUR NEONATAL intensive care unit (NICU)
nursing team at Children’s National Health System
has been working on a continuous quality improvement
initiative to increase the number of patients
receiving breast milk. This presents a special
challenge in a NICU that has a high acuity level,
since the small patients in our care are so vulnerable
and may stay for extended periods of time
while running the risk of serious complications.
In the first phase of our project, 6 NICU staff
We champion kids.
And applaud our nurses
for providing the
most outstanding care.
As a national leader in pediatric medicine, we are dedicated
to changing the lives of kids everywhere. It’s about caring for
kids. Nurturing families and communities and inspiring the
most exceptional staff. It seems other people are noticing our
performance…noticing that our staff, especially our nurses,
are the absolute best at what they do.
Congratulations to our Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Nursing
team, for being named the “2016 Best Nursing Team” by
ADVANCE for Nurses magazine.
Learn more about our services, our Nursing careers and other
opportunities in Washington D.C., Virginia and Maryland.
www.ChildrensNational.org/Nursing
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and Individuals with Disabilities
www.ChildrensNational.org/Nursing
nurses earned certification as
International Board Certified
Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs)
to inaugurate our Lactation
Resource Nurse Service. This
was followed by several nursing
initiatives to support the use
of lactation technology (pump
rentals, scales, creamatocrit and
nipple shields).
Dedicated breast milk refrigerators
were placed at each
patient’s bedside. Breast milk
Children’s National
Health System,
Washington, D.C.
TEAM: Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit
CATEGORY: Best Expertise
ENTRY SUBMITTED BY:
Judith Campbell, RNC, IBCLC,
lactation consultant
freezers were placed in conveniently located nourishment stations,
and a secure nourishment room, complete with deep freezers, was
created and devoted to milk management.
Mothers were told they were welcome to pump at their baby’s
bedside; or, they could choose to pump in an airy room containing
private spaces stocked with supplies and necessary equipment.
This was followed by the creation of a full-time dedicated RN
IBCLC position.
Our team is empowered through staff education that includes
inservices, mentoring, monthly e-newsletters and our interdisciplinary
NICU Human Milk Oversight team, which is chaired by nurses.
This panel is committed to valuing breast milk and breastfeeding
as a critical contribution to the recovery of our patients.
We have implemented many improvements through this collaboration,
including expanded parental education efforts; colostrum
labeling for chronological feeding; the establishment of weekly
bilingual mother-to-mother support groups; electronic orders
for lactation consults; the use of donor human milk; improved
Photo courtesy of Children’s National Health System
14 ADVANCE FOR NURSES n MAY 2016 n www.advanceweb.com/Nurses