More Than A Slogan - A Nursing Career at Lake Charles Memorial
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A Nursing Career with Excellence, Shared Governance and Well-Being In Mind
Being a nurse at Lake Charles Memorial Health System can be more than just a job. With a culture based on quality patient-focused care and professional development, being a part of "Team Memorial" can open up the door to a fulfilling and rewarding career.
Who are we?
Memorial is a true community health system, run by a board of directors made up of local volunteers that serves everyone regardless of age, race, gender or financial status. Once a small local hospital, Memorial has grown into a full health system that includes Lake Charles Memorial Hospital, Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for Women, Moss Memorial Health Clinic, Archer Institute, Memorial Medical Group, and theMemorial/LSUHSC Family Medicine Residency. With an emphasis on Service Excellence, innovative technology, health education, disease prevention and healthcare philanthropy through The Foundation, Memorial is dedicated to not only care for our patients, but care about our patients.
How is nursing different at Memorial?
The culture of nursing at Memorial is based on the “Lake Charles Memorial Health System Nursing Professional Practice Model”. The model supports the mission of promoting a caring culture that empowers each nurse to provide safe, quality patient-focused care through excellent leadership, evidence-based practice, and professional development.
This model identifies five core values demonstrated throughout the entire healthcare team.
Shared Decision Making and Structural Empowerment
This value encourages recognition of nurses, assistance in nursing policy updates, and participation in the Shared Governance Council. From unit-based councils to our organization-wide council infrastructure, shared governance provides bedside leaders with the vehicle for a true voice in nursing practice and operations. Our basic philosophy when making decisions about nursing and nurses is to make sure we have the right bedside nurses at the table to help us make decisions.
Professional Development, Nurse Recognition and Rewards
This value is demonstrated through Nursing Education Fairs, and an annual Wellness Fair focused on self-care across the healthcare team. Recognition of excellent nursing through the POP Award, the DAISY Award, professional development and the Excellence in Nursing Celebration, where nurses are encouraged and recognized for earned certification. Through The Foundation’s Nursing Excellence Fund, nurses are able to take advantage of education opportunities and support the continued education of fellow and future LCMHS nurses. In 2022, the American Nursing Credentialing Center (ANCC) recognized the additional 27 nurses who attained new certification, bring the total number of nursing certifications to 137, with several nurses acquiring multiple certifications.
Healthy Work Environment and Nurse Well-Being
This value recognizes that part of the Memorial Mission is to not only create a workplace that offers growth and opportunities from a professional standpoint, but one that nourishes our individual team members as human beings, with initiatives created to foster an environment of respect, dignity and diversity. This value is demonstrated with the Department Culture Change Initiative, a process that does a “deep dive” on departments to discover ways to improve a healthy workforce. This initiative has led to the development of Behavioral Health Champions, Shared Spaces, Shift Success, and Skill Development.
Safety & Quality Clinical Outcomes
This principle places a high value throughout the health system on safety and quality and its direct link to positive patient outcomes. In 2022, this was demonstrated through the formation of the SWAT Team, that created education and awareness surrounding skin and wound assessment, a continued priority to improve CLABSI, CAUTI, and established new evidence-based practices in the NICU and Family Birth Center.
Evidence-based Practice, Research and Innovation
Memorial demonstrates this value through continued efforts to support nursing education and hand-on policy review. In 2022, the Nurse Residency Program established evidence-based poster presentations as a graduation requirement. The first Trauma Symposium was held to educate nurses, local EMS, first responders and allied healthcare professionals responsible for the provision of trauma care. Other initiatives and education in stroke care, critical family bonding in the NICU, breastfeeding, safe sleep and amniotic fluid embolism were also established.
What to learn more? Explore our Annual Nursing Report.
What is “Experience Memorial”?
Experience Memorial is a workplace culture focused on engaged employees, who in turn provide better care for our patients and community. The “Experience Memorial” mission is focused on the 5 Cs – community, communication, culture, compliance, and collaboration. The annual improvements in employee satisfaction are based on the feedback we receive from our employees and nursing staff – from improvements to benefits packages, cafeteria options, leadership visibility, patient-care improvements, and violence prevention and reporting – as an employee at Lake Charles Memorial Health System, your voice is heard and your feedback matters.
