Nursing Councils provide oversight and guidance for global nursing issues including professional development, clinical practice, education, research and issues unique to Advanced Practice Nurses (APN's). Each council has representation of staff nurses, clinical leadership -- specialists, coordinators and/or APN's -- and management. The councils facilitate decision making and creative innovation that results in an enhanced work environment and/or improved patient outcomes.
The councils each have numerous sub-committees that focus on a particular issue or project. There are also unit based councils that focus on issues for the specific unit.
The five councils as well as the Executive (oversight) council are defined as follows:
Executive Council
- Provides for coordination among the five nursing councils
- Ensures that issues are channeled to the appropriate council
- Consist of the co-chairs of each council and led by the Chief Nurse Executive
- Provides oversight for the communication of council activities
- Provides leadership education for council chairs
Professional Development Council
- Focuses on broad operational issues that effect staff in all nursing departments
- Sets universal standards of performance and creates methods to monitor performance
- Provides support and recognition of professional development activities for nursing
- Includes a sub-group that focuses on employee retention
Clinical Practice Council
- Provides oversight for all clinical nursing issues
- Makes decisions regarding global nursing practice
- Ensures that nursing practice is evidence-based and consistent across the hospital
- Oversight of guideline development and review, standards of care and coordination of new areas of clinical practice
Research Council
- Establishes policies and provides education related to nursing research
- Reviews and approves proposals for research being conducted by nursing staff, faculty or students
- Identifies the need for research projects
- Determines how to use research funds
- Develops programs to showcase and support scholarly activities
Education Council
- Sets strategy for staff development
- Provides oversight for all educational activities including: orientation of staff, development of annual competencies, ongoing staff development and conference planning
- Provides oversight for the placement of students as well as the orientation of instructors from numerous schools of nursing
Advanced Practice Nurse Council
- Provides expertise for APN issues such as titling rules, peer review and competency measures
- Takes responsibility for the credentialing and re-credentialing of all APN's
- Provides for the ongoing development of APN's
- Facilitates education and networking with all APN’s including SLCH and Washington University School of Medicine.