Nursing
Critical to the quality of care in any medical institution is the skill and commitment of its nursing staff. At Silvercrest our nurses are devoted to creating a comfortable, caring environment for those making a long term home with us, and to the development of ever-greater functional ability for those who will go home, (short term rehabilitation).
Reporting to the Vice President of Nursing Services are 8 Clinical Care Coordinators (RNs), each of whom is responsible for the 24 hour management of one of our 40-bed units. Each CCC is provided a staff consistent with the intensity of illness on her unit.
Our nurses are versed in the care of a variety of patient types.
Long term care patient groups include:
- geriatric
- post CVA (stroke)
- dementia (incl. Alzheimer's)
- multiple sclerosis
- cerebral palsy
- traumatic brain injury
- ventilator dependent (chronic respiratory failure)
Short term groups:
- post-surgical rehabilitation
- post-hospitalization rehab
- cardiac rehab
Nurses and CNAs at the 4 South Nursing Station
(Click and drag to change view)
Nurses work hand in glove with the Therapeutic Recreation staff to involve all residents in Silvercrest activities, and alert Rehabilitation and therapy staff when individual residents are seen to need "extra" attention that may slow the decline of their physical and/or cognitive abilities.
A particular tribute to the attentiveness of the nursing staff is the excellent record that Silvercrest enjoys with regard to patient safety and quality issues, (see Quality Care and "Why Silvercrest"). Untoward events such as falls have been kept well below state and national standards by our nurses and CNAs, (certified nursing assistants), and cooperative efforts between our staff and that of New York Hospital Queens has helped to standardize methods for the prevention, diagnosis, documentation and treatment of pressure sores in both the acute and long term care setting. These efforts have allowed the development of an effective protocol that has more recently come to involve the New York-Presbyterian Healthcare System.
Teaching Ourselves
Continued excellence in nursing requires an ongoing commitment to
education. Silvercrest Director of Staff
Development provides an In-Service program for staff, and brings outside
educators to the institution as well.
Our
staff's willingness and ability to quickly embrace the sophisticated Electronic
Medical Record System introduced here has been further testimonial to the
effectiveness of our educational initiatives.
Programs that require a return to school are encouraged, and as a result, many of our Certified Nursing Assistants have earned their LPN credentials, and many LPNs have gone on to become RNs. The significant resources of NYHQ College are also available to Silvercrest staff, and our relationship with New York Hospital Queens allows us to send new nursing graduates to the hospital for preceptorships and in-hospital orientation before bringing them back to their new, elevated roles with us.
Teaching Others
Silvercrest nursing also maintains its vibrancy by providing geriatric and respiratory nursing education to others. Nursing students learn first hand from seasoned staff while many at other institutions benefit from Silvercrest's educational outreach. Widening opportunities for affiliation with area educational institutions also provide Silvercrest with access to tomorrow's nursing talent, and give the department a wonderful chance to impart a love for extended and long term care nursing to young professionals.
