Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH) has become the first hospital outside of America to achieve a fifth Magnet® designation from the American Nurses Credentialing Centre (ANCC).
The global recognition comes 21 years after PAH was honoured as the first Magnet® hospital in the Southern Hemisphere in 2004, reaffirming its commitment to high quality care which remains unparalleled at the tertiary facility.
The momentous announcement was beamed live into a packed Russell Strong Auditorium where staff gathered with anticipation to hear from Chair of the Commission on Magnet®, David Marshall.
“It is my high honour and privilege to officially notify you that the Commission on Magnet has unanimously voted to credential Princess Alexandra Hospital as a Magnet organisation. Congratulations!” he said.
“This accomplishment really is a testament to PAH’s commitment to nursing excellence.
“The Commission on Magnet recognises the organisation’s dedication to the nurses who practice there, to the entire healthcare team, but most importantly to the patients you serve.”
In November 2024, PAH completed the final phase of the fifth designation which involved a three-day site visit, during which four international appraisers met with more than 500 staff, patients, academic colleagues, and community stakeholders.
The Commission on Magnet® identified five exemplars during the appraisal including the high percentage of nurses that hold a baccalaureate or higher qualification in the profession, and outperformance of national benchmarks over the past two years for the nurse-sensitive clinical quality indicator falls with injury in ambulatory care settings.
The final three exemplars related to patient experience with PAH outperforming national benchmarks in the categories of Safety in all inpatient units, and Courtesy and Respect measures within 100 per cent of inpatient and ambulatory care settings.
PAH Executive Director Dr Jeremy Wellwood proudly thanked staff for their remarkable efforts.
“It really reflects on the whole of our team here at PAH and everyone who is focused on giving excellent patient care. To do this now for the fifth time is absolutely amazing,” he said.
“You can’t do this with a few key people, you have to do this with the whole community.”
Dr Wellwood also acknowledged the mammoth effort that went into preparing for, and hosting the site visit late last year which sealed the deal for designation number five.
A big congratulations to staff at PAH for making Magnet® history, in what is a true testament to everyone’s unwavering commitment to excellence in patient care.