one less thing to worry about as a parent

Magnet designation is the highest award and honor that nurses can achieve, but why is it important for our region’s kids? The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) recently recognized Dayton Children’s as a Magnet facility, setting us apart as a center of excellence in pediatric care. Less than seven percent of all health care organizations in the U.S. achieve this status.

As a nurse at Dayton Children’s, I am most excited about what this designation means for the kids and families that we care for every day. I have been a nurse at Dayton Children’s for three years. From the minute that I walked into this hospital, I knew how blessed I was to be able to work in such an amazing facility and culture.

That feeling of amazement and pride that I felt then is something that I continue to feel every day when I come to work. The employees here at Dayton Children’s do not consider their work to be a “job.” Taking care of kids and families and providing them with care and comfort during such stressful times is an honor and a passion. Every day when we walk into this building we think about what we can do to provide even better care than we did the day before, and that makes us special.

As part of our Magnet journey, I was given the opportunity to travel around the hospital to talk with staff about what working at Dayton Children’s means to them. I was overwhelmed by the amazing stories I heard from nurses of compassion, safety, caring and improving outcomes for our patients.

Below is what Magnet designation means for the kids in our community:

• Safety first! Magnet recognizes us for providing the safest care to our kids here at Dayton Children’s. Safety is our top priority and embedded in our culture throughout the organization.
• Expert care. Magnet facilities employ more nurses who have a bachelors level education or higher and more nurses who are certified in their specialty areas. Our nurses are experts in the areas where we work, and we are always striving to expand our education to make sure that the children of our community are being cared for by the most capable hands and minds.
• Better outcomes. We want our kids to have the best possible outcomes. We are basing our care practices on the most current research and the latest evidence to ensure that the health care needs of our children are being met with fewer complications.
• Superior environment. We know that our families are stressed when they’re here in the hospital and many of our kids are very sick. We also know that we have an opportunity to make the lives of our patients and families better while they’re here. When you walk down the halls of Dayton Children’s, you’ll see smiling faces. We smile to comfort and we smile to celebrate all of the kids that we know are getting a little bit better every day.

For the kids in our community, a Magnet designation means having a hospital full of caring nurses, practitioners, and staff who make it their personal mission to provide exceptional care and service. In a world full of worries, one thing you don’t have to worry about is where you will take your child to receive the best care possible. Magnet hospitals are centers of excellence and that’s exactly what you will find here at Dayton Children’s.

By: Audrey Lozier, BSN, RN,

Audrey started as a staff nurse in the general pediatric unit at Dayton Children’s more than three years ago. Today, she’s a clinical resource nurse, educating staff nurses on the latest procedures and evidence-based practices in nursing. She was part of Dayton Children’s Magnet education team, fondly dubbed “The Magnet Five.”