ECMC medical intensive care unit receives national award of excellence

ECMC’s MICU earns American Association of Critical Care Nurses silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence for second time in three years

Erie County Medical Center Corp. on Monday announced the hospital’s medical intensive care unit (MICU) has again been awarded a silver-level American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN) Beacon Award for Excellence, which is a three-year designation highlighting the unit’s achievement of exceptional care through improved outcomes and greater overall patient satisfaction. ECMC’s MICU had previously received the silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence in June 2017 and is one of 16 silver- level Beacon awards in New York for 2020.

ECMC Corp. President and CEO Thomas J. Quatroche Jr., Ph.D., said, “ECMC receives ICU transfers from hospitals all across Western New York because of the high level skill of our MICU caregivers. These skilled clinicians consistently provided excellent, quality care to some of the sickest patients in our community, especially during the last several months of the COVID-19 pandemic. To be only one of 16 silver-level MICUs in the state is a testament to the remarkable team of caregivers who make ECMC’s MICU such an extraordinarily special Unit. Receiving this high-level national recognition is yet just another example of the high quality of care and dedication of the entire ECMC family.”

AACN President Megan Brunson, MSN, RN, CNL, CCRN-CSC, applauded the commitment of the caregivers in the medical intensive care unit at Erie County Medical Center for working together to meet and exceed the high standards set forth by the Beacon Award for Excellence. She stated, “These dedicated health care professionals join other members of our exceptional community of nurses, who set the standard for optimal patient care. Receiving a Beacon Award for Excellence demonstrates a team’s commitment to providing safe, patient-centered and evidence-based care to patients and families. Creating healthy and supportive work environments empowers nurses and other team members to make their optimal contribution. Achieving this award is such an honor and brings such joy to those who have worked so hard to achieve excellence in patient care and positive patient outcomes.”

Established in 2003, the silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence earned by the medical intensive care unit at ECMC signifies an effective approach to policies, procedures and processes that includes engagement of staff and key stakeholders. The unit has evaluation and improvement strategies in place and good performance measures when compared to relevant benchmarks. The MICU earned its silver award by meeting the following evidence-based Beacon Award for Excellence criteria:

• Leadership structures and systems
• Appropriate staffing and staff engagement
• Effective Communication, knowledge management and learning and development
• Evidence-based practice and processes
• Outcome measurement