HERSHEY, Pa. — The Pediatric Intermediate Care Unit (PIMCU) at Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital has received a silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care nurses (AACN). The PIMCU is one of only four pediatric units in Pennsylvania and 30 in the nation to receive this award.
The Beacon Award for Excellence recognizes unit caregivers who successfully improve patient outcomes and align practices with AACN’s six Healthy Work Environment Standards. Units that achieve this three-year, three-level award with gold, silver or bronze designations meet national criteria consistent with Magnet Recognition, the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the National Quality Healthcare Award. The PIMCU earned a silver award by meeting several evidence-based criteria.
The AACN will honor the PIMCU with an announcement in AACN Bold Voices, a monthly member magazine distributed to more than 100,000 acute and critical care nurses nationwide. AACN also honors awardees at the National Teaching Institute & Critical Care Exposition, the world’s largest educational conference and trade show for nurses who care for acutely and critically ill patients and their families.
The PIMCU joins the Heart and Vascular Progressive Care Unit (HVPCU) and the Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU), both of which earned a Gold Beacon Award for Excellence. The MICU was designated in early 2014 and the HVPCU was designated in October.