Living within the service area of LifeCare Medical Center, you probably know a few of the hospital’s nursing staff by name.  They may be friends, neighbors, or even family members. Even if not, they most certainly will treat you like family if you find yourself a LifeCare patient.

Individually, each of these dedicated caregivers provides a unique style and approach to administering patient care.  Together, the nurses of LifeCare Medical Center offer a level of care that has resulted in a steady flow of favorable feedback from patients thanking them for their caring touch.  This positive experience comes as no surprise to registered nurse Roxanne Fabian.  As Director of Nursing, Fabian and the nursing staff actively determine and implement methods for continually improving the  patient/nurse experience at LifeCare.

The Three C’s
The nursing staff embraces what Fabian calls “The Three C’s.”
“They are Competency, Caring, and Compassion,” she says, “and each one is critically important.”
She describes Competency as having the training and knowledge to be a nurse. Next is Caring—for the job as well as the patient. Then comes Compassion; that is, having genuine empathy for patients and their families.  According to Fabian, this well rounded approach does more than get the daily tasks done.  “It provides the framework for everything done during the day,” she says, commending her staff for having taken The Three C’s to heart. “They know and appreciate how much more goes into providing quality service.”

Nurse Classification
LifeCare’s nursing staff consists of registered nurses (RN), licensed practical nurses (LPN), registered nurse’s aides (NA/R)—sometimes referred to as a certified nurse’s assistant—and clerical support.
Together with the physicians, they are the front line of patient care, making sure every medical situation is addressed.  “This is a great group of nurses,” Fabian says. “Honestly, not every healthcare facility in the country has what we do.”  Success, she says, comes from the nurses’ years of experience and their dedication to quality care.  “I’ve had other hospitals call and ask me about our staff’s dedication to cross training,” she says. “Each nurse takes pride and ownership in their work.”  That includes being willing to adjust to changing conditions during their work shift.  Though each nurse has a main work area, situations can arise where one or more nurses may be reassigned to carry out other duties with little or no advanced notice.

The WOW Factor
In some ways, nursing is a timeless profession. The act of caring for the sick and injured is as ancient as humanity itself.  Yet from a modern standpoint, technological advancements have streamlined some of the ways that documentation is administered and shared.  Technology has introduced the portable computer terminal for logging patient information.  Each LifeCare nurse uses a terminal also known as a Workstation On Wheels, or WOW for short.  The WOW can be wheeled throughout the hospital, allowing the nurse to enter data almost immediately as it is obtained.  That information is gathered and monitored via electronic medical records where it can be accessed across the care continuum, thus greatly improving overall patient safety through documentation.

Medical and Surgical Care
Improvements in technology have also changed how some surgical procedures are performed, in many cases resulting in a shorter post-op stay for patients.  Even inpatient surgery patients may find themselves discharged after only a day or two.  The exceptions to this include those with pneumonia, congestive heart failure, or complications from diabetes.  “These may have a longer stay. Either way, our nursing team will make their time here as comfortable as possible,” Fabian says.

Before Going Home
Registered nurses Susan Wilebski and Elaine Billberg are LifeCare’s patient educators.
It’s their job to explain to patients detailed information about the care they received during their time at the hospital and to prepare them for returning home.  “We discuss everything from treatment and why they were admitted in the first place to follow-up care and what to expect in the days ahead,” Wilebski says. 

This is done with every LifeCare patient regardless of how long they were in the hospital.  Sub-acute care is a service offered by LifeCare where a patient may require a longer stay in order to recuperate following orthopedic surgery or hip or knee replacement. 

Still other patients may stay to undergo cardiac rehabilitation or simply wait for available space at a nursing home or other facility.  “With sub-acute service, a patient is no longer in an acute health situation, but they still need to recoup or receive additional therapy or care,” Fabian explains.


Special Care Unit
During critical cases, a patient may require special one-to-one care and monitoring. Such patients receive care through LifeCare’s Special Care Unit.    Similar in some ways to an ICU, a Special Care Unit primarily is for patients who need close monitoring such as cardiac, stroke, or other nearly life threatening situations. 

LifeCare's Muriel Fevold, RN, works the touch screen of the patient monitoring equipment in LIfeCare's Special Care Unit

During those times, a nurse is available literally right outside the patient’s door to be able to respond at a moment’s notice.  “Whether the need for medical care is short or ongoing, you can count on the nurses of LifeCare for our signature competence, caring, and compassion,” Fabian says.