Calling All Current and Future Nurses: If You Want to Challenge the Status Quo, and Possibly Win a Scholarship, Read This
Nurses have been globally celebrated every day this year for their heroics in caring for COVID-19 patients. They have also been commended for their efforts to protect and comfort non-COVID-19 patients who have required acute care in this challenging time, and they often serve as surrogates for separated families during births, deaths, surgeries and treatments. But the truth is that nurses have always been heroes to patients and their families. 2020 was designated the “International Year of the Nurse and Midwife” long before the COVID-19 outbreak began. It’s not enough to celebrate the unity, dedication, passion and acumen of nurses and midwives one day, week or even month each year.
Watch this:
How Zebra is Giving Back to the “Heroes in Scrubs” by Giving Them a Voice – and Possibly a Scholarship
Zebra wanted to make this year extra special for the nurses we work with every day as well as those working hard in the communities in which we live and work. After contemplating the many different ways we could honor both current and future nurses, we decided that one of the best ways to give back is by giving them a way to voice their ideas about what can be one to improve the safety, efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare moving forward. Nurses are the heartbeat of healthcare, and they have the strongest pulse on what’s working and what’s not.
So, today, we are inviting all current nurses and nursing students to speak up and challenge the status quo by joining our “Right Patient Care at the Right Time” campaign! We encourage them to tell us about a healthcare scenario that they have experienced either as a nurse or patient that could have been improved with the right technology. As Zebra’s global healthcare leader Chris Sullivan said in the campaign launch press release, “no idea is too big or too small!”
(Ideas can be submitted here before June 30, 2020 for entrants to be eligible to win one of five $1,000 USD continuing education scholarships.)
Since nurses are on the front lines with patients, in the thick of the healthcare system, they know best what more can be done to enhance workflows, protect patient privacy or safety, expedite care actions without compromising the quality of care and help improve patient outcomes. Even current nursing students have tremendous insight – and foresight – into the changes that could prove most impactful. So, assume that money and resources aren’t an issue: how should healthcare organizations implement technology in new or different ways to make the role of nurses easier and the patient experience better?
If you are a nurse or nursing student, take a few minutes to tell us your thoughts if you haven’t already, and please encourage all the nurses in your life to do the same. We will then share your collective ideas far and wide with those in a position to take tangible action on them. Our goal with this campaign is to help drive meaningful change within the patient experience globally. It is the least we can do considering how much nurses around the world do for us every single day.
We thank all of the front-line workers for everything they are doing to help keep us safe! Please know that Zebra stands by you – today and every day!
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Learn more about the “Right Patient Care at the Right Time” Campaign and encourage all nurses and nursing students to submit ideas here.
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See what else Zebra is doing right now to empower front-line healthcare workers at www.zebra.com/heroes.
Rikki Jennings, BSN, RN, CPN
Rikki Jennings, BSN, RN, CPN is currently the Chief Nursing Informatics Officer (CNIO) at Zebra Technologies where she is responsible for combining her knowledge of patient care, informatics concepts, and change management to effectively address the information and knowledge needs of healthcare professionals and patients to promote safe, effective, and efficient use of IT in clinical settings. She also serves as the strategic liaison for health IT efforts representing nursing and clinician needs.
Early in her nursing career, Rikki recognized a disconnect between purchased technologies and the understanding of their intended value at the bedside by her fellow clinicians and pursued Nursing Informatics. She is passionate about the utilization of technology to support safer, more effective care models. Over the past several years, her work in the healthcare IT industry has provided her an in-depth knowledge of the workflows and utilization of clinical technologies including clinical communication systems, bedside technology solutions, and data analytics tools in hospitals across the country. In 2019, Rikki was recognized in Crain’s Chicago Business’ Notable Women in Healthcare list. Rikki holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from University of Iowa.
