Saint Francis Health System actively encourages its nurses to grow professionally
Saint Francis Health System, Oklahoma’s largest healthcare provider, has more than 10,000 employees at more than 90 locations throughout eastern Oklahoma. Nurses in the Saint Francis Health System network—which includes Warren Clinic, the state’s largest physician group—can pursue careers in large communities (Tulsa, Broken Arrow, McAlester, Muskogee) and small (Vinita, Glenpool, Coweta, Owasso, Sand Springs).
Wherever they choose to work, nurses can enjoy the benefits of a locally owned, locally operated, not-for-profit health system that is dedicated to high-quality, patient-centered care. To this end, Saint Francis Health System has established a wide range of programs and services to help its nurses grow professionally, which ultimately serves to help maintain the health system’s high standards of clinical excellence. In short, the success of Saint Francis Health System and the quality of its nursing program go hand in hand.
The Pursuit of Excellence – Nurses can take advantage of Saint Francis Health System opportunities even while they’re still pursuing a degree.
The health system offers a registered nurse scholarship that funds up to $8,000 of education at an accredited school of nursing. There is also the Saint Francis Extern Program, a nine-week shadow program designed for students in their final year of an accredited RN program. Both the RN scholarship and the extern program are great ways for aspiring nurses to get their foot inside the door.
Making the Transition from School to Vocation – Once accepted into the Saint Francis Health System nursing program, new nurses embark on a yearlong nurse residency program (NRP), a sophisticated program that is designed to help recent graduates transition from the classroom environment to clinical bedside experiences and real-world professional nursing practice. The NRP consists of professional nursing orientation, unit-specific orientation with a preceptor, specialty classes and a variety of nurse residency seminars.
The NRP is tailored specifically to the education needs of newly licensed nurses, and is based upon Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competencies. During orientation, new nurses become familiar with Saint Francis Health System policies, procedures and equipment, and participate in specialty classes specific to the patient population they will be caring for.
Help Along the Way – Once an RN position is accepted, Saint Francis Health System offers a free NCLEX (National Council Licensure Exam) review course, as well as: specialty classes offering patient-focused content that emphasizes application of clinical knowledge and principles relevant to individual specialties (e.g., pediatric, ICU and cardiac classes); nurse residency seminars that focus on communication and teamwork, critical thinking, patient/family-centered care, case management and discharge planning, plan for self-development, evidence-based practice and quality improvement; continuing education classes, including both baccalaureate- and graduate-level courses; and a wide range of national certification programs, including IABP, CRRT, LVAD and ECMO.
Saint Francis Health System invests heavily in its nurses and encourages them to grow professionally in order to fulfill its mission: To extend the presence and healing ministry of Christ in all we do.
Education Opportunities in Action
Susan Roach, RN, is grateful to have taken advantage of Saint Francis Health System’s many educational opportunities. In 2011, while in nursing school, she started working as a nurse technician, which allowed her to take advantage of a Saint Francis scholarship that helped pay for her education. She was a nurse extern during her final year of nursing school, an experience that helped her develop a strong interest in labor and delivery. After graduation, she was hired into the nurse residency program by her labor and delivery manager. She is currently a member of the labor and delivery department and has worked up to clinical ladder III.
