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July 22, 2008

HRMC hosting another open house for nurses

Haywood Regional Medical Center will host another open house to attract and recruit registered nurses. The drop-in event will be held from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 6.

Hospital administrators are initiating plans to attract and retain nurses. An open house held June 18 resulted in several registered nurses being hired. Those involved in recruiting hope a second open house will fill the remaining openings.

“We welcome new graduates, part-time, full-time and per diem nurses. We have immediate openings in the Definitive Observation Care Unit, Intensive Care Unit, med/surg and the emergency department,” said interim director of nursing Krys Candelaria. “We also need a clinical coordinator for the med/surg unit.”

Haywood Regional Medical Center offers competitive wages, flexible scheduling, continuing education and professional practice development opportunities, recognition programs, bonus programs, preceptorships, and competency-based orientation for new employees.

"HRMC's revised provisions for nurses to have input in decision-making and renewed processes for quality patient care and patient safety in every department, are some of the key initiatives in place to attract many of our nurses who left, as well as new, qualified nurses," said CEO Al Byers.

When fully staffed, HRMC employs about 270 nurses, almost one-third of the hospital’s workforce of 900. So, it’s easy to see just how vital nurses are to the day-to-day operations of the medical center. As staffing is increased, the number of patients admitted increases, Byers said.

While some nurses relocate to Haywood County and Western North Carolina from other parts of the country, many are native to the area. The hospital has an excellent relationship with Haywood Community College, hiring more new graduates than any other single source.

HRMC offers scholarships through the Louis P. Tiers Scholarship Endowment and funds from the hospital, with the number of scholarships growing to 17. The Haywood Regional Medical Center Foundation’s board of directors recently approved $5,000 from its general endowment account to create a fund for continuing education for nurses.

“Continuing education and advanced certification increases nurses’ professional knowledge and enhances patient care,” said Royanne Schumacher, clinical coordinator for HRMC’s nursing administration department. “It also improves morale and can be a great retention tool.”

The continuing education fund will support a myriad of educational opportunities for HRMC nurses from specialized certifications in areas like critical care, emergency care, and surgical care to participation in national conferences.  The $5,000 could provide for as many as 25 to 30 advanced certifications this year. Additional funds may be added through this year's golf tournament proceeds and are welcome through other donor support.

Long-time nurses share many reasons for working at Haywood Regional, including the atmosphere of a small hospital, friendly staff, excellent benefit package and convenient location.

“This is a neighborhood hospital, where nurses are people as opposed to being a number. Care is very personable,” Schumacher said.

Initial interviews will be conducted in a classroom on the seventh floor at Haywood Regional Medical Center.