News

July 2009

RELEASE UPON RECEIPT July 30, 2009

For more information, contact: Blair K. Sartory Communications Specialist 618-257-5932

Memorial Hospital First in Area to Launch
Pain Resource Nurse Program

(Belleville, Illinois) Memorial Hospital is the first in the area to launch a Pain Resource Nurse Program, designed to educate nurses in pain management and allow them to apply and share the knowledge they receive from training to improve the quality of pain management given to their patients.

A Pain Resource Nurse (PRN) is a registered nurse who functions both as a resource and a change agent in disseminating information, interfacing with nurses, physicians and other healthcare providers, patients and families to facilitate quality pain management.

Beth Johns, RN, palliative care nurse and Linda Eisele-Hlubocky, RN, nurse clinician, at Memorial, co-coordinate the PRN program and explain that the program serves a greater purpose than just continuing nursing education. “The overall intent of the program is to create an environment where nurses become role models and peer resources for other nurses. They will be able to take this information back to others in their unit and help them manage their patient’s pain and identify appropriate resources and interventions to use for pain management.”

Aside from educating patients and fellow nurses on pain management, PRNs work as advocates, relaying information to doctors and taking steps to ensure patients are receiving the correct care to manage their specific pain needs. Eighteen nurses at Memorial have been certified as PRNs, representing all nursing units in the hospital.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison created the program, but training is held at Northwestern University in Chicago. The training process begins with a three day course, but the education will continue at Memorial, explains Mary Lou Schmulbach, RN, clinical care director at Memorial. “Everything we do at Memorial focuses on what is best for our patients. The only way to improve the care we give is to educate ourselves.”

Nurses will have monthly meetings to monitor their progress to discuss and alleviate problems they may encounter. PRNs must reclassify for the status every two years. The program is intended to grow over time, providing Memorial patients with additional nurses specializing in pain management services.

For more information on the Pain Resource Nurse Program at Memorial, contact Mary Lou Schmulbach, RN at 618-257-5217.

 

         

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