Linda Minnich with award at the 2015 Press Ganey National Client Conference in January. photo courtesy of Press Ganey
Concord, Calif. — Linda Minnich, RN, BSN, CPAN, who works as a staff nurse in the Perioperative Services Post-Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) at John Muir Medical Center, Concord, was recently named by Press Ganey as its 2015 National Nurse of the Year. Press Ganey is a leading national provider of patient experience measurement and performance analytics.
The award, which was presented at a ceremony in Orlando, annually recognizes the contributions of an outstanding direct-care nurse who has demonstrated a commitment to care innovation, transformation and collaboration to support an exceptional patient experience. According to Press Ganey, Linda was honored for her superior leadership and active role in developing and implementing pain management strategies that have improved the patient experience across John Muir Health.
“Linda has touched the lives of our patients for more than 35 years and is a very worthy recipient of this award,” said Donna Brackley, senior vice president for Patient Care Services and chief nursing officer at John Muir Medical Center, Concord. “Through her work on pain management, she has fostered outstanding collaboration among surgeons, anesthesiologists, nurses, pharmacists, physical therapists and other members of our care team, which ultimately benefits our patients.”
Linda’s interest in pain management began back in 2012 when she and two other staff nurses, Heather Crowder and Tammy Montoya, attended the Pain Resource Nurse training program at the City of Hope in Los Angeles. Since that time, they have been driving forces in championing pain management in the care of post-surgical patients at John Muir Health.
“I appreciate the individual recognition from Press Ganey, but this is really a team award that represents the great work of my very talented colleagues,” said Minnich. “We recognized that in order to enhance the patient experience, our health system had to keep up with and implement best practices in pain management therapies.
“Our orthopedic patients now experience less post-operative pain and improved functional outcomes. In addition, many of our complex chronic pain patients experience fewer side effects, such as nausea and risks associated with opioid pain control,” added Minnich.
Linda currently serves as the co-chairperson of John Muir Health’s Quality Improvement Pain Team. She and her team have been instrumental in working with anesthesiologists at John Muir Health to implement a series of treatment modalities, including femoral nerve blocks in joint replacement and hip fracture patients and the use of ketamine infusions to treat pain in surgical patients with chronic pain. The work of this team related to the implementation of a nerve block program was identified as a Leading Practice by VHA, a health care alliance of more than 2,400 non-profit organizations, and “blue printed” to assist other facilities in achieving the same levels of success.
“We’ve made great improvements in the area of pain management and patient experience for our surgical patients, and greatly appreciate Linda’s leadership of this effort,” said Brackley. “This recognition is emblematic of the high-quality and compassionate care provided by our nurses, physicians and staff at John Muir Health.”
Both of John Muir Health’s medical centers are Magnet® recognized by The American Nurses Credentialing Center® (ANCC), a subsidiary of the American Nurses Association, for quality and excellence in nursing. Magnet® recognition is the highest level of recognition that the ANCC can grant to a health care organization.
About Press Ganey
According to their website, for nearly 30 years, Press Ganey’s mission has been to support health care providers in understanding and improving the entire patient experience. As a strategic business partner to more than 20,000 health care organizations, they lead the industry in helping clients transform the patient experience and create continuous, sustainable improvement. For more information visit www.pressganey.com.
About John Muir Health
John Muir Health is a nationally recognized, not-for-profit health care organization east of San Francisco serving patients in Contra Costa, eastern Alameda and southern Solano Counties. It includes a network of more than 1,000 primary care and specialty physicians, nearly 6,000 employees, medical centers in Concord and Walnut Creek, including Contra Costa County’s only trauma center, and a Behavioral Health Center. John Muir Health also has partnerships with San Ramon Regional Medical Center, UCSF Medical Center and Stanford Children’s Health to expand its capabilities, increase access to services and better serve patients. The health system offers a full-range of medical services, including primary care, outpatient and imaging services, and is widely recognized as a leader in many specialties – neurosciences, orthopedic, cancer, cardiovascular, trauma, emergency, pediatrics and high-risk obstetrics care.
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