ALBIA, Iowa – Monroe County Hospital & Clinics (MCHC) is pleased to announce that Breanna Coughlin, RN and Jayde Comstock, RN have completed the Mercy Rural Health Network Residency Program.
The Mercy Rural Health Network Nurse Residency program was started in year 2016 to help new nurses’ transition into practice and to provide resources as they continue delivering cutting edge care. A total of five residents were selected to participate in this program from April 2018 to March 2019. Breanna and Jayde were two of the five selected. Katie Ables, RN was chosen to be Breanna and Jayde’s Preceptor. Katie supported Breanna and Jayde for a total of 12 months while they learned the culture within MCHC and continued providing care to patients and families.
Katie Ables, RN completed the Mercy Rural Health Network Residency program in 2016. Her project of completion was named “Teach Back.” Now, as a Preceptor to Breanna and Jayde, she was able to give advice, support and complete the circle. “I had the absolute pleasure and honor to precept two fantastic nurses that are highly intelligent, personable and provide first class health care to our patients,” stated Katie Ables, RN.
The first nine months of this program entailed Breanna and Jayde receiving modules with activities to work through that followed with discussion questions each month to respond to in a group email enabling learning from one another. Breanna and Jayde also were tasked with thinking of a quality improvement project to utilize within the hospital they work. They chose a project and named it, “Comfort Menu.” This project entailed strategically thinking of a patient, their needs and how hospital staff could help make their visit more enjoyable. Evidence-based practice was used to support the quality improvement process of this project. As of today, this project has been pieced together and a brochure has been made to present to patients. “Comfort Menu” is in full swing.
The project “Comfort Menu” was fully supported by multiple MCHC staff including Katie Ables, RN, Gale Herrera, Chief Nursing Officer, Angela Freeman, Director of Quality Improvement, Veronica Fuhs, Chief Executive Officer, Nick Gerdes, Pharmacist, Gerald Haas, DO, Medical Director and several from Ancillary Services.
Breanna, Jayde and Katie received Continuing Education Units (CEU’s) from the Iowa Board of Nursing. Upon completion of graduation on March 5, 2019, Breanna and Jayde presented their project, “Comfort Menu,” and celebrated their successes.
“I can’t say enough about the dedication and commitment to excellence Breanna and Jayde endure. They strive for the best to deliver world class health care. They are our future,” stated Katie Ables, RN.
For more information, contact: Gale Herrera, Chief Nursing Officer
Monroe County Hospital & Clinics
641-932-1710
About Monroe County Hospital & Clinics
Established in 1951, Monroe County Hospital & Clinics (MCHC) is a trusted provider of high quality, local health care to the residents of Monroe County, IA and surrounding counties. Our highest mission is a promise to create an excellent health care experience. We believe it must be our number one priority to ensure the personal safety and security of each customer and employee. Our full-service, primary care hospital offers an array of inpatient and outpatient health services including surgical, clinical, specialty, physical therapy, cardiac rehabilitation, occupational therapy, emergency, sleep studies, pain management services and much more. Visit www.mchalbia.com for more information.