UC Irvine Medical Center nursing excellence recognized with Magnet® designation

October 14, 2013

UC Irvine Medical Center's continued commitment to nursing excellence has earned it a third designation as a Magnet®-recognized hospital. It is one of the first hospitals to receive a third recognition since the program began in 1993.

A program of the American Nurses Credentialing Center, Magnet® designation recognizes nursing excellence and provides patients with the ultimate benchmark to measure expectations of care. Those achieving Magnet status must maintain rigorous standards as part of the four-year designation.

Terry A. Belmont, chief executive officer of UC Irvine Medical Center, said this designation reflects the nursing program's place among the top tier of U.S. hospitals. Only about 6 percent of the nation's 6,000 hospitals achieve Magnet® Recognition.

“The Magnet Recognition Program recognizes the commitment our nurses make every day to provide the highest care possible for our patients,” said Karen Grimley, RN, chief nursing officer at UC Irvine Medical Center.

Magnet® designation has become the gold standard for nursing excellence and is taken into consideration when the public judges healthcare organizations. In fact, U.S. News & World Report’s annual showcase of “America’s Best Hospitals” includes Magnet® recognition in its ranking criteria for quality of inpatient care.

The ANCC conducts a comprehensive review of patient outcomes and satisfaction linked to nursing practices. In addition, the center closely examines the medical center's environment and the organization's ability to recruit and retain top talent.  According to the ANCC, research shows that Magnet® hospitals are more effective at attracting and keeping quality nurses.

The medical center offers a number of professional opportunities for nurses, including tuition reimbursement, shared governance, committee involvement, 40 continuing education hours, support for presentations at national conferences and onsite R.N. to B.S.N. programs.

In 2003, UC Irvine became the first academic medical center in Southern California to achieve Magnet® designation and the first hospital in Orange County.

For more information on the Magnet® Recognition Program, visit www.nursecredentialing.org.

UCI Health comprises the clinical, medical education and research enterprises of the University of California, Irvine. Patients can access UCI Health at physician offices throughout Orange County and at its main campus, UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Calif., a 412-bed acute care hospital that provides tertiary and quaternary care, ambulatory and specialty medical clinics, behavioral health and rehabilitation. U.S. News & World Report has listed it among America’s Best Hospitals for 13 consecutive years. UC Irvine Medical Center features Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program, Level I trauma center and Level II pediatric trauma center, and is the primary teaching hospital for UCI Health School of Medicine. UCI Health serves a region of more than 3 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County.

About the University of California, Irvine: Founded in 1965, UCI is a top-ranked university dedicated to research, scholarship and community service. Led by Chancellor Michael Drake since 2005, UCI is among the most dynamic campuses in the University of California system, with more than 28,000 undergraduate and graduate students, 1,100 faculty and 9,400 staff. Orange County’s second-largest employer, UCI contributes an annual economic impact of $4.3 billion. For more UCI news, visit news.uci.edu.