In support of the nonprofit Morristown Medical Center
and Goryeb Children's Hospital

Donor Support Fuels New Vision for Nursing

Pictured (l to r): Adriana Shubeck, MSN, RN-BC, CPHON, John Napolitano, MSN, RN, CPEN and Amanda Tedeschi, MSN, RNC-MNN

Nationwide, a growing nursing shortage has led hospitals to explore novel ways to meet the challenge of staying at the forefront of innovative medical treatment and patient-centric care.

“Statistics show that one million nurses will retire by 2030, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), which is a startling number to imagine,” said Brandee Fetherman, MSN, RN, CENP, CCRN, chief nursing officer for Morristown Medical Center. “Morristown Medical Center’s Magnet®-designated nursing team will benefit tremendously thanks to the launch of the Dick, Jackie and Kim Deskovick Joint Faculty Nurse Educator Program.”

Philanthropy from the Deskovick family has allowed the program to hire four nurses with advanced degrees, each with respective clinical expertise in pediatrics, the pediatric emergency department, mother-baby and labor and delivery. The new team is working to create an immersive education model for student nurses during their clinical rotations and identify students who have an interest in working at the hospital after graduation. At the same time, they will help seasoned Morristown Medical Center nurses further develop their practice skills and, through this mentorship and collaboration, help to boost a sense of personal accomplishment while mitigating stress and emotional burnout.

This added layer of support could not come at a better time and is helping to inform mentoring relationships that will enrich the learning process and elevate a sense of camaraderie and teamwork across the medical center.

“Our nurses rank among the top in the world, achieving a sixth Magnet® designation for nursing excellence that few hospitals attain,” said Brandee. “Thanks to the Deskovick family’s incredible generosity, we can continue to attract and retain the brightest minds in nursing today and offer superior training to maintain our high caliber standards. We have received initial feedback that the program has boosted self-confidence and helped to alleviate stress, two breakthroughs in building nursing resiliency.”

One of the first nurses to join the Dick, Jackie and Kim Deskovick Joint Faculty Nurse Educator Program is Amanda Tedeschi, MSN, RNC-MNN, an Atlantic Health System team member for six years who will work with nursing students clinically rotating at Morristown Medical Center in the Labor and Delivery Department and Mother-Baby Unit.

“I think having nursing students immerse themselves in clinical rotations with someone as familiar with the unit as I am can only help hone their skills to a greater degree,” said Amanda.  “There’s more of an ease with the educational process when you have someone who already knows the hospital, the policies of the unit, and the nursing staff on a first-name basis.”

When expectant mothers arrive at Morristown Medical Center, Amanda understands that it is one of the most exciting times of their lives. Still, it can be an overwhelming experience with so much new information to learn. While Amanda explains protocols and procedures to the nursing students while on rotation, the expectant moms also hear her instruction, which helps them relax and understand the process, especially if it is their first baby.

“This only reinforces how much we deeply care for our patients,” said Amanda. “I have always loved maternity, but there’s a lot of education that goes into prepping new moms for their role while also teaching them how to take care of themselves in the meantime,” said Amanda. “I am thrilled that I can further help our maternity patients understand their care while at the same time immerse our nursing trainees in the high-caliber standards and expectations of our hospital.”

In between teaching, the educators will assist in further developing the practice skills of Morristown Medical Center nurses. Adriana Shubeck, MSN, RN-BC, CPHON, a pediatric nurse at Goryeb Children’s Hospital since 2016, is the second Joint Faculty Nurse Educator to join the program.

“When we are not teaching, we help with the education needs of our specific unit, which would involve nurses of all experience levels, especially our newly hired nurses,” said Adriana. “Starting as a new nurse in pediatrics is particularly challenging. To bridge this transition, I designed pediatric-specific professional development lectures that strengthen skills and teach our new nurses how to maintain their balance and resiliency, which is especially important post-COVID.”

While the Dick, Jackie and Kim Deskovick Joint Faculty Nurse Educator Program will raise the bar in nursing performance and go far in nurturing mentoring connections, it cannot be overstated its value in creating a comfort level amongst the nursing team in performing as highly-skilled clinicians with extraordinary caring in every patient encounter, central tenets of the hospital’s mission.  

The program also helps to build the strength of the medical center’s reputation outside the hospital’s walls. “Many of the students already have a specific interest in our hospital, so this program is a creative way for them to explore different units at Morristown Medical Center and build relationships with the staff, as well as a way for us to identify students who may be interested in applying for jobs post-graduation,” said Adriana.

“I’m so impressed by the forward-thinking culture I have already experienced throughout the hospital,” said John Napolitano, MSN, RN, CPEN, the third hire for the program, assigned to the Gagnon Children’s Emergency Department. “Bedside nursing is challenging, and this program will get more people excited about going into the field. It is great that our hospital leaders are thinking about this. They are not only thinking about the near-term; they are working to build us a future.”

For more information on supporting the Dick, Jackie and Kim Deskovick Joint Faculty Nurse Educator Program and other nursing needs at Morristown Medical Center, contact Joette Rosato, director of annual giving, at 973-593-2412 or joette.rosato@atlantichealth.org.

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