Has the state of your department’s budget left you looking for an economic bailout of your own? Staff development is no stranger to budget cuts and tough times, says Adrianne E. Avillion, DEd, RN, president of Avillion’s Curriculum Design, a consulting firm in York, PA.

At Meridian Health in Neptune, NJ, staff development specialists have focused on the hospital’s top priorities: Receiving full reimbursement from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and keeping competitive in the local market.

At Meridian, for example, the three-hospital system is in the process of rolling out colored wrist bands to better identify patients with certain needs. Each of the system’s 2,500 nurses will have to participate in a mandatory educational session to learn about using the wristbands—resulting in 2,000-2,500 hours of time they’re not spending on the floor.

“But there’s no debate about whether or not we’re doing this education,” says Richard Ridge, RN, MBA, PhD, NEA-BC, corporate director of nursing education for Meridian Health. “It’s part of a systemwide initiative to improve patient safety.”

Editor’s note: This excerpt was adapted from the February issue of The Staff Educator. Discover all the benefits of subscribing to The Staff Educator!