Spruce Acutes, a DaVita acute dialysis team, provides crucial renal services at a Magnet-designated facility. This team is proud of its culturally diverse member and gender mix as well as the diverse background of the nurses, patient care technicians (PCTs) and support staff.

Spruce Acutes is sensitive to the special needs of patients requiring dialysis. Because the team works in an anticipatory manner, this sensitivity leads to patient satisfaction. The team has become extended family members to patients as they are dialyzed 3 times a week for 3-4 hours at a time, and sometimes more frequently. Patients who require continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) have a slow dialysis therapy set up by a team member in a critical care setting. CRRT runs for 24 hours a day, for as long as the nephrology team and critical care team feel is necessary.

Communication

Teamwork is crucial to providing excellence in patient care, regardless of specialty.

Every team member acknowledges the importance of communication. The team communicates effectively with each other, using language skills, written communication, a communication book for any unit- or treatment-related issue, team meetings and computer communication. Every effort is made to keep the lines of communication open so everyone is kept abreast of updates. Telephone and written report sheets are used to communicate with the floor staff.

Patient communication is just as important as among the team. The team is culturally sensitive in their communication with patients, as well as being sensitive to patients' special needs. For example, patients who have been on dialysis for some time can tell the nurse or PCT how long their bleeding time is after their access needles are pulled.

Knowledge

The Spruce Acutes unit has many years of combined nursing experience, many of these in dialysis. One facility administrator (FA) is a certified nephrology nurse. Another FA is completing a master's degree in business. Most of the team has a BSN, one has an MSN and another a doctoral degree.

Other certifications held by the team members are: certified med/surg RN (CMSRN), certified diabetes educator (CDE) and an American Heart Association CPR and first aid instructor. DaVita has a nurse educator who covers the Philadelphia and South Jersey team members' renal and dialysis educational needs. A company tuition reimbursement program promotes continuing education.

Knowledge is a powerful tool. The team shares their nursing and technical knowledge with one another. They also share their knowledge with the patients by teaching about their condition, their medications, their access to care, diet, fluid limitations and their treatments. They answer their questions on multiple topics, such as co-morbidities. As Dr. Joslin, a noted endocrinologist, stated, "He who knows the most lives the longest." The team strives to share their knowledge and expertise with the patients so the patients can improve their quality of life.

Spruce Acutes team members bring one invaluable quality to the team - life experience from their diverse backgrounds. For instance, one of the nurses was a former police sergeant. She is an effective charge nurse. The team also has a former chiropractor, a science teacher, a former certified pool operator instructor who taught pool and spa water chemistry for the National Swimming Pool Foundation, a certified diabetes educator and a nurse who splits her dialysis work between a DaVita unit in Minnesota and Spruce Acutes.

Knowledge is reinforced by promoting national certification in nephrology nursing, membership in the American Nephrology Nurses Association and other professional organizations. Continuing education programs and conference attendance are also encouraged to maintain the team's knowledge of cutting edge technology and patient care.

Spruce Acutes is an outstanding team which strives for service excellence for our patients, the facility we service, to one another and to DaVita