UW Medical Center is 1st to earn 6 Magnet nursing designations

SEATTLE, Nov. 21, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- UW Medicine today announced that one of its Seattle hospitals, UW Medical Center, is the first facility in the world to earn a sixth Magnet designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

It also was the first hospital ever to earn the designation, in 1994, and has been continuously recertified since then.

"This recognition is viewed around the world as the ultimate seal of quality and confidence," said Grace Parker, UW Medical Center's chief nursing officer. "Magnet organizations are recognized for superior nursing processes and patient care, which leads to high levels of patient satisfaction."

Less than 8 percent of U.S. hospitals currently carry the Magnet designation. Recognized facilities must meet rigorous criteria, demonstrating, for example, nurses' role in decision-making, opportunities for professional advancement, adherence to practice standards, and an established system for quality improvement, among other measures.

[Watch a 2:47 video that the hospital made about its Magnet status.]

"Research shows that patients at Magnet hospitals have lower infection and mortality rates," said Cindy Sayre, the hospital's associate administrator of patient care services. "The designation also strengthens our ability to recruit and retain highly qualified nurses and other clinicians."

Magnet hospitals have relatively lower turnover among nurses and shorter vacancies for those jobs than do facilities without the designation.

UW Medical Center is one of three Washington state hospitals with current Magnet status: Seattle Children's, a UW Medicine affiliate, was first recognized in 2008 and Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia was first honored in 2010.  

Currently 446 hospitals, including seven outside of the United States, claim the Magnet designation.  Australia, in 2004, became home to the first non-U.S. hospital so recognized.

U.S. News & World Report recognizes Magnet designation as a primary competence indicator in its annual assessment of the nation's best hospitals. In August, the publication ranked UW Medical Center as No. 1 in Seattle and in Washington.

About UW Medicine
UW Medicine is one of the top-rated academic medical systems in the world. With a mission to improve the health of the public, UW Medicine educates the next generation of physicians and scientists, leads one of the world's largest and most comprehensive medical research programs, and provides outstanding care to patients from across the globe. UW Medicine's four hospitals—Harborview Medical Center, Northwest Hospital & Medical Center, University of Washington Medical Center and Valley Medical Center—admit more than 64,000 patients each year. A network of hospital-based and outpatient clinics, including 12 UW Neighborhood Clinics, see more than 1.3 million patients each year.

The UW School of Medicine, part of the UW Medicine system, leads the internationally recognized, community-based WWAMI Program, serving the states of Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. The UW School of Medicine has been ranked No. 1 in the nation in primary-care training for more than 20 years by U.S. News & World Report. School of Medicine faculty receive more than $1 billion per year in research funding, ranking it as the top public institution recipient of biomedical research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and second among all public and private institutions for NIH funding.

UW Medicine has 26,000 employees and an annual budget of nearly $5 billion. Also part of the UW Medicine system are Airlift Northwest and the UW Physicians practice group, the largest physician practice plan in the region. UW Medicine shares in the ownership and governance of the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Seattle Children's, and also shares in ownership of Children's University Medical Group with Seattle Children's.

For more information, visit uwmedicine.org.

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About the Magnet Recognition Program®
ANCC's Magnet Recognition Program® is the most prestigious distinction a healthcare organization can receive for nursing excellence and quality patient outcomes. Organizations that achieve Magnet recognition are part of an esteemed group that demonstrates superior nursing practices and outcomes.

Media contact: 
Susan Gregg
UW Medicine / Media Relations
206.616.6730 or 206.390.3226 / [email protected]

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SOURCE UW Medicine

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