Professional Nursing Career Opportunities
with Battle Creek Health System
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Medical/Surgical Services
Inpatient medical and surgical nursing services provide comprehensive
care to a vast array of patients at Battle Creek Health System.
The A-2 orthopaedics-neurological unit cares for both trauma
patients and post-elective surgical patients. The A-3 medical/surgical
unit works with physicians from nearly all specialties to
care for a broad cross section of patients. The 5-C medical/cardio-pulmonary
unit provides full telemetry and step-down care with complete
monitoring available as needed. Overall, these inpatient units
stress a team approach to patient care, have the opportunity
to work closely with most physicians and hospital departments,
and support the key role families can play in patient care.
 At
Battle Creek Health System, nurse education is as important
as patient/family education. Therefore, nurses who work in
these units are encouraged to pursue specialized certification
in several areas in which they may have interest including:
orthopaedics, medical/surgical, and Advanced Cardiac Life
Support (ACLS). The inpatient nursing units of Battle Creek
Health System are constantly looking for motivated people
to develop and implement innovative programs to continuously
improve the patient care experience.
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing
Psychiatric/mental health nursing provides one of the most
diverse nursing experiences at Battle Creek Health System.
Nurses at our Behavioral Health Center have the opportunity
to work in two different programs. Opportunities include
gero-psych and dually diagnosed inpatient adults. In each
area, nurses are a vital component of the interdisciplinary
team. Nurses are responsible for the initial assessment of
all new patients, and they prepare the initial treatment
plan for the patient's first 72 hours of care.
Nurses at BCHS's Behavioral Health Center are responsible
for maintaining a therapeutic community. They conduct psycho
educational and health teaching groups and serve as instructional
staff for all paraprofessionals. Nurses also interact with
the patients' families to support the treatment goals. Certification
in psychiatric/mental health nursing is encouraged.
Critical Care/Emergency Room
CRITICAL CARE: Critical care nursing at Battle Creek Health
System affords nurses the opportunity to work with physicians
from nearly all specialty areas to care for the hospital's
most challenging patients. Facilities include a state-of-the-art
intensive care unit, and a large diagnostic cardiac cath lab.
Given the important role critical care plays in the continuum
of care, nurses who thrive on challenge and variety will be
interested in this unit. Critical care nurses must be Advanced
Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certified, a certificate in critical
care nursing is also encouraged. This commitment to continuing
education is supported by a dedicated nurse educator and involvement
in the annual Critical Care Symposium conducted by the Battle
Creek Health System intensivists for physicians and nurses
across the nation.
EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT: Battle Creek Health System features
a large, modern emergency department which together see approximately
45,000 patients each year. Due to its location in a smaller
metropolitan area surrounded by rural areas, the emergency
department treats a wide variety of patients and diagnoses.
There are farm injuries, industrial mishaps, and military
accidents. The department also treats blunt trauma along with
recreational and sports injuries. Members of the Emergency
Department work together as a team to both treat and prevent
injuries and accidents. The nursing staff is becoming involved
in the national Emergency Nurses Cancel Alcohol Related Emergencies
(EN C.A.R.E.) program, and frequently plays a key role in
the community education initiatives of the System. Emergency
Department nurses must be Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
certified. Further certification in emergency nursing or critical
care nursing is encouraged.
Surgery
Surgical nursing services at Battle Creek Health System include
the operating room, outpatient surgery post anesthesia care
unit, pre-anesthesia testing, and the endoscopy unit. Surgery
nurses have the opportunity to work on a wide variety of cases,
including all types of general, vascular, neurological, ENT,
urology and orthopaedics cases. New nurses coming into the
operating room without previous OR experience receive an intensive
six-month surgery nursing training program conducted by the
department's nurse educator and nurse preceptors.
Nursing within the Surgical Services area is very team oriented.
Equipment is up-to-date, continuing education is vital, and
certification as a Certified Nurse Operating Room (CNOR),
Certified Ambulatory Post Anesthesia (CAPA), Certified Gastroenterology
Registered Nurse (CGRN), or Certified Post Anesthesia Nursing
(CPAN) is encouraged.
Maternal/Child Care
Members of the maternal/child care nursing team work in four
areas: labor and delivery, post partum care, the special care
nursery and pediatrics. A philosophy of family-centered care
is evidenced throughout the maternal/child care areas. Families
are encouraged to be involved in the patients' care and we
try whenever possible to accommodate our patients' special
requests. Also, since we have an opportunity to be involved
with our patients at important times in their lives, we believe
providing necessary information and education is part of our
nursing responsibility. We regularly hold a number of classes
and seminars, and take our role as educators very seriously.
Each year, approximately 1400 babies are delivered by family
practitioners, obstetricians and certified nurse midwives
in modern birthing rooms or a dedicated delivery suite. Post
partum services focus on education and helping to establish
a bond between mother and child. Mothers and their babies
stay together whenever possible. If this is not possible,
our special care nursery allows mothers to be close to their
babies who require strict observation and monitoring, and
our inpatient pediatric unit cares for all young people under
16 years of age. Nurses who work in this area are encouraged
to become certified in the obstetrics and pediatrics specialty
areas. Completion of the American Hospital Association Neo-Natal
Resuscitation program is required of nurses working in the
special care nursery.
Special Services
HEMODIALYSIS: The hemodialysis unit includes both a nine-chair
outpatient area operating on three shifts, six-days per week,
and an outpatient hypertension screening clinic for patients
requiring monthly, quarterly or annual monitoring by a nephrologist.
Our patients include everyone from teenagers to seniors, however,
the average patient is 65-years old. Nurses in the Battle
Creek Health System hemodialysis unit play a key role in preparing
patients for upcoming transplants, since our unit helps sustain
patients awaiting transplants at nearby Borgess Medical Center
in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
We recognize that hemodialysis forces significant life changes
in our patients, and we work together with the medical and
psycho-social team to make these changes as comfortable as
possible. Our dedicated social worker and dietitian complete
our care team. Our annual picnics and holiday parties help
to create a team atmosphere involving the patients and their
families. A three-month orientation program helps prepare
nurses for work on this unit. Nurses are encouraged to become
certified nephrology nurses.
CARDIAC HEALTH: Cardiac health services at Battle Creek Health
System focus on the diagnosis and rehabilitation of cardiac
disease. Diagnostic testing services include stress tests,
EKGs, ECHOs, holter monitors and pacemaker follow-up. Our
Cardiac Rehab Program is a sequential, three-phase program
of inpatient teaching and monitored exercise, monitored out-patient
exercise, and supervised out-patient exercise. Nurses in this
area are required to have two years of critical care experience,
and appropriate certification is encouraged. In addition to
the three-phase program described above, the cardiac rehab
team also coordinates a bi-monthly lecture series, sponsors
a monthly support group, and conducts blood pressure and cholesterol
screenings for the community.
The Cardiac Cath Lab opened in 1990 and has treated thousands
of patients to date. The Lab is a diagnostic lab, but also
performs pacemaker insertion and insertion of interaortic
balloon pumps. Patients seen in the cath lab are often referred
to the Cardiac Rehab Program for follow-up. In both areas,
nurses recognize that the body, mind and spirit connection
can work in unison to help a patient get well. Nurses who
work in this area must have two years of critical care experience
and two years of cath lab experience.
Oncology
Comprehensive oncology services provided at Battle Creek
Health System allow area residents to receive much needed
care at home, where support systems and family and friends
are nearby. Nurses in the Cancer Center at Battle Creek Health
System understand the full scope of cancer and its treatment,
because they work in our three care areas. These areas include
outpatient medical oncology, radiation oncology and inpatient
oncology. Our Cancer Center provides an average of 700 patient
visits per month, our linear accelerator treats 40-50 patients
per day, and more than 20 patients are typically hospitalized
in our inpatient oncology unit. Nurses are encouraged to become
Oncology Nursing Society (ONS) certified. Approximately 25%
of the R.N. staff has achieved this goal.
Throughout our treatment areas, oncology nurses work to treat
the entire patient. We recognize that many things help patients
get well, and encourage patients to take an active role in
their treatment. We coordinate several support groups, including
a unique "Kids Helping Kids" group of young people
dealing with life threatening diseases in their families.
The oncology team is extremely current in the therapies administered,
we participate in a number of national research protocol studies,
and our medical and radiation oncologists view nurses as integral
members of the treatment team.
Nursing practice at Battle Creek Health
System is centered around four core values; collaboration,
professionalism, a commitment to quality and the importance
of human dignity. These fundamental values are more than
ideals on paper; they represent our philosophical framework
for every patient interaction, every nursing decision, every
day.
Our commitment to
collaboration. . .
in the delivery of care supports our role as patient advocates,
working with the
entire care team to achieve excellence.
Our commitment to
professionalism. . .
reaffirms our dedication to the disciplines of nursing and
helps ensure that
nursing practice continues to be valued and respected.
Our commitment to
quality. . .
allows us to be flexible and creative as we work with our
colleagues to
meet the challenges of health care today.
Our commitment to
human dignity. . .
enables us to address the holistic needs of our patients and
their families,
be they physical, cognitive, spiritual or emotional needs.
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