Uchealth Poudre Valley Hospital Earns Prestigious Magnet Nursing Recognition for Sixth Time 

UCHealth Poudre Valley Hospital was recently re-designated as a Magnet hospital, making it one of just 13 hospitals worldwide to have earned this prestigious recognition at least six times.

The American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Magnet Recognition Program® is the ultimate achievement for nursing excellence. Organizations that achieve this designation are recognized for their superior nursing processes and quality patient care, which leads to the highest levels of safety, quality, and patient satisfaction.

A crowd of nurses and staff cheered this morning in a conference room when Sharon Pappas, chair of the ANCC Commission on Magnet Recognition, announced.

“I just absolutely love rowdy Colorado nurses,” she said. “It’s the best… What you all have done in the state of Colorado has created an expectation, and you set the bar.”

PVH’s original designation came in 2000, making the hospital the nation’s 18th and the first in the Rocky Mountain region to receive Magnet designation. This was followed by re-designations in 2004, 2009, 2014, 2018, and this year.

Ashley Bruning, a chief nursing officer at PVH, said that earning a sixth designation illustrates the hospital’s long tradition of nursing excellence.

“This is part of who we are – part of our culture,” she said. “Every day and every year, we build upon this excellence so we are always delivering the best care possible to our patients. We are so proud of our nurses. They are continually growing professionally, raising the bar and improving the lives of our patients.”

The Magnet model focuses on five main components: transformational leadership; structural empowerment; exemplary professional practice; new knowledge, innovations and improvements; and empirical outcomes. A nursing program must exemplify the five components through metrics and measurable outcomes to achieve designation.

To maintain the designation, PVH submitted an extensive document with examples demonstrating how they met specific standards. After the document was accepted, the nurses at PVH hosted a three-day, in-person site visit with Magnet appraisers to verify, clarify and amplify the examples from the document. Two years of data had to show higher-than-average results, and with these results, PVH had to set new, even higher goals.

Pappas specifically called out four achievements where PVH is outperforming the national benchmarks: the high percentage of nurses who have attained a bachelor’s degree or higher; avoiding falls with injury in ambulatory settings; reducing the number of emergency department patients who leave without being seen; and unit-level data on patient engagement and patient-centered care.

Future goals for the nursing program will focus on nurses continuing to lead through change and innovate using evidence-based practice and research, enhancing nurse well-being programs and working at the system level to improve initiatives regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion.

As of today, 16 Colorado hospitals are among more than 600 hospitals across the world that are currently recognized as Magnet facilities. For the first time, this list also includes UCHealth Memorial Hospital in Colorado Springs, which was designated today as well. Other UCHealth hospitals with this designation include the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora and the Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland.

Kevin Unger, the hospital’s president, and CEO, said this recognition demonstrates that the nurses at PVH are among the best in the nation.

“The impact they have on our patients is tremendous,” Unger said. “They are keeping our patients safer, providing evidence-based care that leads to better outcomes, and making this an excellent place to work.”

Research demonstrates that Magnet recognition provides specific benefits to healthcare organizations and their communities, such as:

• Higher patient satisfaction with nurse communication.
• Lower risk of 30-day mortality.
• Lower rates of falls and improved skin integrity.
• Higher job satisfaction among nurses and lower staff turnover.

This is the latest of several national recognitions for PVH. Healthgrades in January named PVH among “America’s 50 Best Hospitals for 2023.” It is ranked among the best hospitals in Colorado by U.S. News and World Report, as well as a high performer for orthopedics care, heart failure, kidney failure, back surgery, stroke, maternity care, hip fracture, hip replacement, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and pneumonia. The hospital also earned The Joint Commission’s Certificate of Distinction for Primary Stroke Centers, recognizing centers that make exceptional efforts to foster better outcomes for stroke patients.

About UCHealth

UCHealth is an innovative, nonprofit health system that delivers the highest quality medical care with an excellent patient experience. UCHealth includes 30,000 employees, 12 acute-care hospitals and hundreds of physicians across Colorado, southern Wyoming and western Nebraska. With University of Colorado Hospital on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus as its academic anchor and the only adult academic medical center in the region, UCHealth is dedicated to providing unmatched patient care in the Rocky Mountain West. Offering more than 150 clinic locations, UCHealth provides extensive community benefits and pushes the boundaries of medicine through advanced treatments and clinical trials, improving health through innovation.