Attending the AONE annual meeting has become a tradition for me since 2007. The opportunity to network with other nursing leaders and colleagues and to attend presentations by nationally and internationally known speakers makes this one a priority for many. Having worked as a conference planner in my early days as a CNS, I respect the work it takes to orchestrate one of these events and create the seamless experience for the attendees.

I remember vividly the day in early 2007 when the President of our health system called together a patient experience team to discuss a mission critical priority. I was being asked to co-lead the roll-out of Hourly Rounds simultaneously on 28 inpatient acute care units (including critical care) across five hospitals.

Leadership rounding with patients allows the nurse manager to directly impact patient experience and satisfaction. Nurse leaders are constantly balancing multiple tasks and priorities at any given moment. With a digital rounding tool, nurse leaders can effectively manage the patient experience, improve staff engagement, and communicate with other departments. We’ve composed 4 different strategies to make your rounds more effective.

Recently, a mentor and colleague summarized my 35-year nursing career into a single theme, ”choosing opportunity.” When diagnosed with what could have been a career-ending latex allergy, I chose opportunity and entered a new field as a Magnet Program® consultant and educator. While traveling for Magnet, I met a young technology entrepreneur who soon invited me to join his Florida based start-up to assist in shaping the use of smartphones within healthcare facilities.

As a new generation of nurses join the healthcare industry, we see that over a quarter (28.9%) of new nurses will leave their position within a year. According to the National Healthcare Retention and RN Staffing Report, 17.2% is the national average nurse turnover rate.

Music has long been considered a therapy to help behavioral and mental health patients cope with challenges and ease stress. As healthcare continues to makes strides in improving the experience for all patients, clinicians are finding that music can benefit a variety of patient populations in both inpatient and outpatient facilities.

Patients undergoing a conscious treatment or procedure can benefit greatly from listening to soothing music; helping them relax and decrease muscle tension. This helps reduce a patient’s pain by shifting their focus and lowering anxiety.