Charge Nurse Workshop - October 22, 2024

October 22, 2024

The program is designed to address the individual skill and competency development of the nurses transitioning into the charge nurse role.  The nurses attending will have the opportunity to network with other charge nurses as well as the program instructors who are nursing directors, managers, educators, and staff.

2024 Charge Nurse Workshop Outline:

 CNW introduction: role/responsibility of the charge nurse 

  1. Activity: “what does a good day look like, what does a challenging day look like- what made it so?”  OR what fears do you have of the charge nurse role? 
  2. Then use those as talking points to discuss how the charge nurse can positively impact each day 
  1. Leader- accountability/role model 
  1. Decision maker 
  1. Service recovery 
  1. Resource for staff 
  1. Nursing chain of command 
  1. Day to day concrete skills/responsibilities: 
  1. Shift management 
  1. Narc count 
  1. Attend RRT/Code 
  1. Possible primary RN where LPNs are utilized 
  1. Service recovery 
  1. Bed meeting 
  1. Reassignment checklist 
  1. Assignment creation 
  1. Activity: assignment creation- as team or individual assignments? 
  1. Need to create individual practice assignments regardless 
  1. Conflict Management and Personalities 
  1. Personality assessment
  1. Conflict management= core skill of charge nurse 
  1. Activity: Play video of a team conflict and discuss with group 
  1. Patient Experience: drive home the WHY- how patient experience positively benefits the nurse (ie: decreased call bells, safety, etc) 
  1. Charge Nurse Role in facilitating BSSR 
  1. Engage staff in hourly rounding/safety rounds 
  1. Service Recovery 
  1. Patient Rep 
  1. AOD/Manager 
  1. Communication Boards 
  1. Staff experience 
  1. Creating a healthy milieu  
  1. Self-care/breaks- managing 
  1. Activity: role play opportunity based on specific situations within our hospital
  1. Just Culture 
  1. What is just culture 
  1. How to report an event 
  1. What events to report 
  1. Purpose of event reporting 
  1. Not punitive/ Just culture 
  1. Flyer of Just Culture course and how to enroll 
  1. Reinforce it is an approved certification for nursing career ladder 
  1. High risk/low volume situations  
  1. RRT 
  1. When to call/ How to call/ Who to Call 
  1. Early Warning Signs of Decompensation
  1. Labs you should care about 
  1. What to assess 
  1. BGM 
  1. Neuro 
  1. EKG 
  1. Transferring pt to ICU/ higher level of care 
  1. Respiratory capacity on units 
  1. Drug capacity on units- resource where to find 
  1. Bipap/Cpap 
  1. Documentation of RRT 
  1. Code Blue 
  1. Code Team 
  1. Respiratory Arrest/Cardiac Arrest 
  1. Focus on first 5 
  1. Crowd Control 
  1. Stroke Alert 
  1. Change in neuro status? 
  1. How to call Stroke Alert 
  1. Telemedicine process Vidyo 
  1. Floor placement process 
  1. Code STEMI 
  1. Exposures 
  1. Needle Sticks 
  1. Splashing 
  1. Contacting Team 
  1. Crisis Event Management  
  1. CISM 
  1. Code Lavender 
  1. Throughput management  
  1. AM Huddle 0900-0930 
  1. Resources: 
  1. Nurse Ally 
  1. Case Management  
  1. AOD 
  1. Medcall 
  1. Multidisciplinary  
  1. Identifying Barriers to Discharge 
  1. Setting patients and physicians up for discharge  
  1. Admission Process including report from prev department (may vary site to site) 
  1. ED 
  1. Direct Admit 
  1. Internal Transfer 
  1. OR/IR 
  1. Transfer Process to another unit inc ICU 
  1. Transfer Process to another facility 
  1. AMA 
  1. What can send/can’t send 
  1. Legal considerations  
  1. Emergency Management 
  1. Decrease content on backend preparation and focus on CN role in a situation 
  1. Activity: jigsaw puzzle to pull pieces together- specific situation and what steps would you take 
  1. Budget considerations for the bedside nurse  
  1. Pay for Performance Medicare/Medicaid & Patient experience  
  1. Connect the why 
  1. Discuss Staffing Grid- 40% of operational budget is staffing 
  1. HPPD brief overview 
  1. AODs help with staffing needs and will shift staff as needed  
  1. How to manage staffing based on grid- Staff for acuity 
  1. Process for too many nurses- (this may vary site to site depending on AOD involvement) 
  1. Holidays 
  1. Every day 
  1. Reinforce perception of “unsafe” when nurses pulled from 1 unit to another- offer perspective  
  1. Process for not enough nurses 
  1. AOD/ Staffing 
  1. Review need 
  1. Resources- bonus pay? 
  1. Message/Email staff members 
  1. How to escalate if critically low 
  1. Supplies and cost savings 
  1. Align system goals (Decrease LOS & quality metrics- HAIs) to the concept of budget 
  1. Catheter audits and removal reminder 
  1. CLABSI awareness, CHG bathing completion and convos on line necessity during rounds 
  1. Early discharges 
  1. Planning for discharge on admission 

Target Audience

Registered Nurse

Learning Objectives

Describe duties, behaviors and characteristics of an effective charge nurse.

List resources available for the charge nurse to handle the variety of situations that arise during a shift.

Identify effective communication methods used to manage coworkers, patients or family members.

Course summary
Available credit: 
  • 7.50 ANCC
    UPMC Provider Unit is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation
  • 7.50 Attendance
Course opens: 
10/22/2024
Course expires: 
12/22/2024
Event starts: 
10/22/2024 - 7:00am EDT
Event ends: 
10/22/2024 - 3:30pm EDT

The program is designed to address the individual skill and competency development of the nurses transitioning into the charge nurse role.  The nurses attending will have the opportunity to network with other charge nurses as well as the program instructors who are nursing directors, managers, educators, and staff.

2024 Charge Nurse Workshop Outline:

 CNW introduction: role/responsibility of the charge nurse 

  1. Activity: “what does a good day look like, what does a challenging day look like- what made it so?”  OR what fears do you have of the charge nurse role? 
  2. Then use those as talking points to discuss how the charge nurse can positively impact each day 
  1. Leader- accountability/role model 
  1. Decision maker 
  1. Service recovery 
  1. Resource for staff 
  1. Nursing chain of command 
  1. Day to day concrete skills/responsibilities: 
  1. Shift management 
  1. Narc count 
  1. Attend RRT/Code 
  1. Possible primary RN where LPNs are utilized 
  1. Service recovery 
  1. Bed meeting 
  1. Reassignment checklist 
  1. Assignment creation 
  1. Activity: assignment creation- as team or individual assignments? 
  1. Need to create individual practice assignments regardless 
  1. Conflict Management and Personalities 
  1. Personality assessment
  1. Conflict management= core skill of charge nurse 
  1. Activity: Play video of a team conflict and discuss with group 
  1. Patient Experience: drive home the WHY- how patient experience positively benefits the nurse (ie: decreased call bells, safety, etc) 
  1. Charge Nurse Role in facilitating BSSR 
  1. Engage staff in hourly rounding/safety rounds 
  1. Service Recovery 
  1. Patient Rep 
  1. AOD/Manager 
  1. Communication Boards 
  1. Staff experience 
  1. Creating a healthy milieu  
  1. Self-care/breaks- managing 
  1. Activity: role play opportunity based on specific situations within our hospital
  1. Just Culture 
  1. What is just culture 
  1. How to report an event 
  1. What events to report 
  1. Purpose of event reporting 
  1. Not punitive/ Just culture 
  1. Flyer of Just Culture course and how to enroll 
  1. Reinforce it is an approved certification for nursing career ladder 
  1. High risk/low volume situations  
  1. RRT 
  1. When to call/ How to call/ Who to Call 
  1. Early Warning Signs of Decompensation
  1. Labs you should care about 
  1. What to assess 
  1. BGM 
  1. Neuro 
  1. EKG 
  1. Transferring pt to ICU/ higher level of care 
  1. Respiratory capacity on units 
  1. Drug capacity on units- resource where to find 
  1. Bipap/Cpap 
  1. Documentation of RRT 
  1. Code Blue 
  1. Code Team 
  1. Respiratory Arrest/Cardiac Arrest 
  1. Focus on first 5 
  1. Crowd Control 
  1. Stroke Alert 
  1. Change in neuro status? 
  1. How to call Stroke Alert 
  1. Telemedicine process Vidyo 
  1. Floor placement process 
  1. Code STEMI 
  1. Exposures 
  1. Needle Sticks 
  1. Splashing 
  1. Contacting Team 
  1. Crisis Event Management  
  1. CISM 
  1. Code Lavender 
  1. Throughput management  
  1. AM Huddle 0900-0930 
  1. Resources: 
  1. Nurse Ally 
  1. Case Management  
  1. AOD 
  1. Medcall 
  1. Multidisciplinary  
  1. Identifying Barriers to Discharge 
  1. Setting patients and physicians up for discharge  
  1. Admission Process including report from prev department (may vary site to site) 
  1. ED 
  1. Direct Admit 
  1. Internal Transfer 
  1. OR/IR 
  1. Transfer Process to another unit inc ICU 
  1. Transfer Process to another facility 
  1. AMA 
  1. What can send/can’t send 
  1. Legal considerations  
  1. Emergency Management 
  1. Decrease content on backend preparation and focus on CN role in a situation 
  1. Activity: jigsaw puzzle to pull pieces together- specific situation and what steps would you take 
  1. Budget considerations for the bedside nurse  
  1. Pay for Performance Medicare/Medicaid & Patient experience  
  1. Connect the why 
  1. Discuss Staffing Grid- 40% of operational budget is staffing 
  1. HPPD brief overview 
  1. AODs help with staffing needs and will shift staff as needed  
  1. How to manage staffing based on grid- Staff for acuity 
  1. Process for too many nurses- (this may vary site to site depending on AOD involvement) 
  1. Holidays 
  1. Every day 
  1. Reinforce perception of “unsafe” when nurses pulled from 1 unit to another- offer perspective  
  1. Process for not enough nurses 
  1. AOD/ Staffing 
  1. Review need 
  1. Resources- bonus pay? 
  1. Message/Email staff members 
  1. How to escalate if critically low 
  1. Supplies and cost savings 
  1. Align system goals (Decrease LOS & quality metrics- HAIs) to the concept of budget 
  1. Catheter audits and removal reminder 
  1. CLABSI awareness, CHG bathing completion and convos on line necessity during rounds 
  1. Early discharges 
  1. Planning for discharge on admission 
UPMC Memorial ACB 1
York, PA
United States

Theresa Carrico

Allison Silfies

Robin Helm

Fran Zondlo

Krista Shimaitis

Brianna Bloom

Kelsey Wesko

Jennifer Hammond

Brandi Topper

Jennifer Barett

Heather Stanley

Jessica Creter

Aaron Smith

In support of improving patient care, the University of Pittsburgh is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.

Nursing (CNE)
The maximum number of hours awarded for this Continuing Nursing Education activity is 7.5 contact hours.

Other health care professionals will receive a certificate of attendance confirming the number of contact hours commensurate with the extent of participation in this activity. 

Available Credit

  • 7.50 ANCC
    UPMC Provider Unit is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation
  • 7.50 Attendance
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