Revving Up Our Tricycle's Rear Wheels

Our natural curiosity drives research and education, creating the best care for our patients

A longtime nurse who drives an hour one-way just to work here every day stopped me in the hallway recently. I asked her what makes her so dedicated. Her answer: our culture that turns “problems” into opportunities for research and education. She sees it in the way she and her colleagues handle any complex situations that arise while caring for patients. They study each situation and learn how to do better.

Our natural curiosity and desire to give our patients the best care is why we relish the opportunity to be lifelong learners. We quench our thirst for knowledge by participating in research and education—the two smaller, rear wheels of our organization’s tricycle model. They power the larger front wheel of patient care.

We know the most effective and safest patient care comes from never being satisfied. We share the excitement of studying and improving the way we deliver care, and we take pride knowing our work is making our patients heal faster and live better.

At most hospitals, only administrators, Ph.D.s or physicians conduct research. But two years ago, our nursing staff took a bold step: creating the Bedside Scientist Institute (BSI). This “school within our hospital” teaches the people who spend the most time with our patients—bedside caregivers—to turn their observations into clinical research, guided by the latest medical evidence. Our BSI is a national model for other Magnet hospitals like ours.

Now, a BSI driving force and professor Joni Bokovoy, Dr.PH, R.N., is an author, too. Her new book, Clinical Research in Practice, outlines the right way to read, evaluate and use research at the bedside. Her book showcases many examples of successful research developed right here, and you can read more about it inside this CheckUp.

We know research is important because we see firsthand how it benefits patients. Several of our colleagues, including a hospital volunteer, wanted to join the fight against breast cancer. They enrolled in the STAR Trial, one of the largest cancer-prevention studies in history. Their participation helped medical professionals learn that two medications are successful in reducing the risk for developing certain breast cancers.

Research and education are linked because to find the best way to provide care, you must have a mentor who can help you get there. We are a teaching hospital, and our teaching reaches more people each year and keeps us up to date on the newest treatments.

We are home to 450 physicians who also serve as faculty with Penn State University’s College of Medicine. We host 171 medical residents and teach physician assistants, nurses, nurse interns and other caregivers. We provide more than 900 continuing medical education credit hours. Our Emergency Medicine Institute educates 13,000 people each year to better serve the needs of our region’s ill and injured.

Our dedication to education means we’re teaching tomorrow’s caregivers today. It also attracts some of the nation’s best medical professionals, like transplant surgeon Michael Moritz, M.D.

The bottom line: Because we’re constantly learning and relearning, opening our minds to new ideas and striving to do even better next time, we’re giving all our patients the high-quality care they deserve. Our contributions are helping improve the lives of people in the Lehigh Valley and people from all walks of life throughout the world.

Lou Liebhaber, Chief Operating Officer

ARTICLE TOOLS: