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J Nurs Care QualVol. 21, No. 2, pp. 104–109c© 2006 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.

Sharpening Your SawThis column provides insights and highlights best practices from the field that can be used around the

country to be successful in the new accreditation process. I invite you to freely share your ideas, tips,

strategies, and experiences, or pose questions that others may have experienced to share their insight

and approaches. Please feel free to contact me to submit ideas/best practices for future columns.

Toni C. Smith, EdD, RN, FNAP, e-mail: toni smith@urmc.rochester.edu.

Nursing Intranet Web SiteA Critical Communication Tool

Terri Scharfe-Pretino, MBA, RN;Stephanie Von Bacho, MSN, RN

NURSES practice in a complex, active en-vironment, and need to have timely in-

formation and resources in their work areasto assist them to provide quality patient careand participate in their professional nursingpractice development. With more than 3000staff members, the Nursing Practice depart-ment at Strong Memorial Hospital identifiedthe need to enhance the timeliness and varietyof communication pathways for nursing staffas a growth opportunity. This included provid-ing additional mechanisms for nurses and staffto provide feedback to nursing leadership. Asa result of this assessment and work with nurs-ing staff, the Strong Memorial Hospital Nurs-ing Intranet site was targeted as one innova-tive solution to provide 24/7 communicationand feedback mechanisms for nurses and staffof the Department of Nursing Practice.

One of the driving factors for the creationof the Web site was enhancing communica-

From the University of Rochester Medical Center,Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, NY.

Corresponding author: Terri Scharfe-Pretino, MBA, RN,Strong Memorial Hospital/Golisano Children’s Hospitalat Strong, 601 Elmwood Ave, Box No. 619-11, Rochester,NY 14624 (e-mail: stephanie vonbacho@urmc.rochester.edu).

tion and feedback as identified during our in-stitution’s gap analysis early in the AmericanNurses Credentialing Center Magnet Applica-tion process. Creation of an internal nursingWeb site was one innovative initiative opera-tionalized to meet this objective. The Web siteprovides “one-stop-shopping” for a variety ofnursing resources. Real-time information andupdates, feedback to management, meetingminutes and agenda items for the shared gov-ernance council, quality improvement infor-mation, cultural diversity, and career optionsare but a few of the links available to staff.

Additional motivators for the creation of thenursing Web site included the following:

• Joint Commission on Accreditationof Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO)Compliance: Preparing staff for surveysand at the same time educating themabout the survey process and complianceexpectations.

• Patient Safety Goals: Education and Im-plementation of the National PatientSafety Goals (NPSG): Making available in-formation and posters listing each NPSGas well as the two associated evidenced-based or expert-based recommendations.

• Patient Satisfaction Initiatives: SharingPress Ganey results and unit-specificpriorities.

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• Staff Satisfaction Initiatives: Participat-ing in the Work Force Engagement On-line survey, supported by a grant throughthe Hospital Association of New YorkState. This initiative aimed at helpingnurses with a balanced work/home lifewas unveiled on the site during NationalNurses Week celebrations.

• Performance Improvement: Sharinginformation about performance im-provement and best practices, a focus/outcome of the American Nurses Creden-tialing Center Magnet Designation sitevisit.

WEB SITE DEVELOPMENT PROCESS

Initial work on the Web site, facilitated bythe authors, was completed by a representa-tive group of staff nurses, who identified a listof electronic resources, which they needed to

Table 1. Web site content

News Speaking strongUpdates in Practice E-mail Feedback System to CNO, Associate Directors ofPractice Alerts Nursing (for each clinical area) andNursing Newsletter Nursing Support Operations

About us Feedback Mechanism (for comments/questions aboutLetter from CNO∗ nursing policies and procedures)Mission/Vision of Nursing Practice SNEC (Strong Nurse Executive Council—shared governanceProfessional Practice Model model)Description Statement from Chairperson of SNEC,

Resource center Level II Staff NursePolicy Manuals By-lawsPatient Care Resources Meeting MinutesDigital Library Links Sub-committee Meeting MinutesEvidenced-based Practice Magnet

Links Copy of Application DocumentsCultural Diversity Links Magnet VideoPatient Education Communication postersNursing Education Putting patients first/quality cornerContinuing Education Best PracticesCompetencies Patient Safety NPSG

Strong careers Patient SatisfactionJob Postings Performance ImprovementHuman Resource LinkPerformance Evaluations

∗ CNO indicates chief nursing officer.

have available in their practice sites. Duringtheir work, the suggested Web site contentwas organized into 8 content areas (Table 1).

From these ideas, the information archi-tecture of the nursing Web site was de-veloped and content written. Working col-laboratively with the information systemdepartment (ISD), the site was electronicallydesigned and feedback mechanisms werecreated.

In addition to creating the site, “Owner-ships”of each content area were designated toappropriate leaders and/or committees. The“Owners”were given the accountability to en-sure that information in their area is relevant,up-to-date, and innovative, and that any avail-able links are active.

In April 2004, the new Nursing Intranet Sitewent “live.” Since inception, many updatesand additions to content have been added onthe basis of feedback and need. Pictures of

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Figure 1. Example of main intranet nursing page.

more than 200 staff nurses are showcased onthe site. The pictures change each time thesite is accessed. The current site looks likeFigure 1.

An Intranet Oversight Committee withnurse representatives from all levels (staffnurse, nurse managers, and advanced prac-tice nurses) guides the future initiatives forthis electronic resource. Upcoming additions

to the Web site include• nursing department specific areas,• unit-specific areas that will foster commu-

nication and include posting of meetingminutes and other unit business,

• online learning options,• electronic surveying capability, and• leadership/management resource sec-

tion.

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Figure 2. Computer-based training.

Figure 3. Example of feedback intranet page.

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Figure 4. Sharing of best practices.

IMPACT

With the rollout of the Nursing Intranetweb site, a number of outcomes wereachieved. First, there was increased utiliza-tion of electronic resources. On implementa-tion of the newly designed site, hits to theNursing Intranet site increased from 31,500to 390,000. Second, the site served as an im-mediate communication pathway for relevantpractice information. Staff has the ability toaccess information immediately. In addition,nurse managers are e-mailed the links for new

policies and practice changes, expediting ac-cess to rapidly changing information.

Third, educational rollout for computer-based training and other educational initia-tives are accessible to staff at the point in timethat they are ready to complete it (Figure 2).Fourth, the Nursing Intranet Web site pro-vides immediate feedback to nursing lead-ership regarding real-time issues affectingnurses and patient care. The intent of thefeedback process is to augment the existingcommunication pathways available for infor-mation exchange. The feedback or questions

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posed through the Intranet feedback pro-cess are directed to the chief nursing of-ficer, the associate directors of the clini-cal area, or the director/coordinator of theinvolved area. Nurses providing feedbackare offered several options for receipt ofresponse—by e-mail or by phone (work orhome) (Figure 3).

Another outcome of the Nursing Intranetsite was creation of a forum to share bestpractices with nurse colleagues. Staff canpost best practices at the site, such as thoseshown in Figure 4. Last, the Web site has

provided a means of developing a positive/collaborative working relationship with theISD.

SUMMARY

Real-time communication is the key to es-tablishing an environment that promotes apositive and engaged workforce. Use of the in-tranet for nursing-specific needs enhances theoverall quality of the clinical care, the workenvironment, and staff satisfaction.