ROLE DEVELOPMENT

The Stanford Center for Evidence-Based Practice

Submitted by Barb Mayer, PhD, RN, CNS, CPHQ,

Executive Director of Professional Practice

& Clinical Improvement

In early 2022, the Professional Practice and Clinical improvement department launched the Stanford Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) Center. The Center, led by Dr. Barbara Mayer, PhD, RN, supports continual evaluation of our nursing practice by encouraging a culture of inquiry at all levels and facilitating implementation of best evidence. The Center seeks to improve and sustain improvement capability among the professional nursing staff through provision of tools and templates, didactic and experiential learning opportunities, and coaching by experts among our Clinical Nurse Specialist team.

Efforts to ensure nursing practice is evidence-based are driven by the EBP Model. The inner circle represents the contribution of both research and quality improvement outcomes in supporting evidence-based nursing practice. The Practice, Education, Excellence and Quality teams contribute to EBP and the gold arrows connecting them symbolize the bi-directional collaboration to drive generation and implementation of EBP. The red outer circle represents the internal and external factors that influence nursing and may trigger changes in practice.

The Center offers education programs using the Framework for Translating Evidence into Practice as a foundation to improve the skills of others in implementing sustainable EBP and measuring impact on patient outcomes. Doctorally prepared nurses and clinical subject matter experts coach and mentor staff and are available for consultation and assistance in planning a project. Additionally, assistance with literature searching is available through the Lane Medical Library. Interactive tools and templates, housed by the Center, support each step of the Framework. Additional tools and resources are available on the Center website.

Leadership and Management Academy (LAMA)

The Leadership and Management Academy (LAMA) was developed in 2018 in collaboration with key stakeholders from SHC Human Resources, nursing leadership, physician partners, Stanford Medicine’s Value Improvement Programs, and support services leaders. LAMA's aim is to provide mid-level leaders with a structured program to facilitate role transition as a new leader, build peer support networks, and standardize training across disciplines.

Currently, LAMA is a six-month competency-based program. It consists of 10 sessions in which participants learn valuable tools that they can utilize in their new leadership roles. Additionally, there is time to network and all participants complete a leadership project. Topics covered in the sessions are targeted to provide knowledge in the area of leading and managing at SHC and help develop participants into well-rounded, knowledgeable and resourceful leaders. Subject matter is incorporated via:

Guest speakers
Group activities
Individualized work

During 2021, SHC celebrated the graduation of 21 participants from Cohort 2, see their photos below!

Transformation Scholarship

For over the past 15 years, Stanford’s Transformation Scholarship has been available to nurses who are seeking to elevate their practice. Employees can receive up to $5,000 per year for education and professional development purposes. In the past, nurses have used this scholarship to enhance their exemplary professional practice and excel in BSN, MSN, MBA, DNP, and PhD programs, as well as advanced nursing specialty degrees and certifications.

Mentorship Platform

Stanford Health Care (SHC) Nurse Mentorship Program was designed to help nurses at all levels of the organization succeed in reaching their own individualized goals in their nursing profession. The SHC Nursing Mentorship Program acknowledges that aligning nurses’ goals with mentors that have already achieved those goals will streamline the nurses’ efforts at reaching a higher satisfaction within their professional nursing journey.

A mentor is a seasoned professional who has advanced job-related experience, accomplishments that the mentee is seeking to achieve, knowledge of the organization, a positive attitude, and excellent communication skills.

At Stanford, the goals of the mentoring program are to promote a culture of mentorship, professional development, teamwork, and succession planning for the nurses of SHC. Mentorship is one way that Stanford develops and retains top nursing talent. It has also proven to be effective in decreasing the costs associated with nursing recruitment, orientation and turnover.

Based on its success and growing demand, the mentorship program has evolved beyond the mentoring of new nurses to now providing a customized mentorship experience tailored to each nurse’s individual career goals. Mentees have reported a high level of satisfaction with the mentorship program and a high rate of goal achievement from their mentoring relationships.

StandOut Strengths

Why fit in when you can stand out?

The StandOut strengths platform helps participants hone in on personal strengths, especially each person's top two strengths. This platform is a powerful tool that allows SHC nurses and interprofessionals to connect, build upon their strengths, and accelerate SHC's collective performance as a team and as a vibrant and engaged organization. Read more about this employee engagement tool here.