Nursing at Hilo Benioff Medical Center

Professional Development

• Hilo Benioff Medical Center aims to provide meaningful and challenging nursing careers at our organization. Staff are highly encouraged to advance their degree with tuition reimbursement offered by the organization and multiple scholarships available. Managers work with their staff currently enrolled in school to find a schedule that serves both.
• The Chief Nursing Officer and Nursing Director encourage nurses to achieve specialized certification to provide the best evidence-based care to our patients. We celebrate our certified nurses.
  • ○ Certified Nurses Day ~ March 19th
• Recognizing the growing need for healthcare workers within our organization, Hilo Benioff Medical Center started the Nurse Residency Program (NRP) in 2010. In 2023, so far, thirteen cohorts have graduated from the program, with a ____% retention rate. Nurse residents are partnered with a preceptor and a mentor to ensure they reach their maximal potential.
• Hilo Benioff Medical Center offers a Critical Care Training Program for nurses who wish to move to the critical care department.
• Other nurse development programs to support professional growth opportunities include:
  • On-site Basic Life Support, Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Pediatric Advanced Life Support (ACLS), High Performance CPR, Trauma Nursing Critical Care (TNCC), and Neonatal Resuscitation Program (NRP)
    • Interdisciplinary classes from across the care setting
  • Unlimited access to HealthStream for continuing education hours
  • Support for nursing research and evidence-based practice project
  • Adjunct faculty opportunities via partnerships with local universities

Professional Nursing Role

• Nurses are empowered to use their critical thinking skills to be the change they want to see in the organization. For the professional nurse, the practice environment involves inter-professional communication, care-coordination and collaborative approach. In 2023, Hilo Medical Center started its Magnet journey to create a nursing environment based on the pillars of:
  • Transformational leadership
  • Structural empowerment
  • Exemplary professional practice
  • New knowledge and innovations
  • Empirical Outcomes

• Nursing leaders sit on various interdisciplinary divisions and lead Nursing Improvement projects such as:
  • Stroke Program
  • STEMI Program
  • Falls committee
  • Restraints committee
  • Patient flow committee
  • Workplace violence committee
  • Alarms committee
  • Pain committee
  • Plan of care committee
  • Code blue committee
  • Palliative care committee
  • Consent committee
  • Trauma Program

• Nurse leaders from across the care setting are able to collaborate and drive projects from concept to clinical implementation.

Care Delivery & Clinical Practice

• Nurses at Hilo Benioff Medical Center strive to create the safest patient environment. As evidenced by our Professional Practice Model (PPM), patient-centered care is the foundation of our practice environment. The nurse-patient relationship aims to ensure patients collaborate with the entire care team on their care goals.

Shared Governance

• Nurses are the leading change agents at Hilo Benioff Medical Center. Enhancing shared-decision making, nurses bring suggestions and ideas to Shared Governance. Each unit has a chair and co-chair that serve a two-year term. Shared Governance at HBMC promotes open communication and creates a culture of innovation across all care settings.
• Shared Governance at Hilo Medical Center stives to empower staff, promote autonomy, and enhance the quality of patient care.  Shared Governance includes aides, technicians, nurses, and clerks from our healthcare team to receive frontline input on issues, process improvements, and collaborative decision-making process.