UC Davis Health is a large academic health system consisting of one level I trauma medical center, two health professions schools and a vast network of primary care providers. While the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing is small in number compared to the other units, the value it brings to meeting the goals of the system are significant.
Health system leaders aspire for a fully integrated academic health system in this next evolution of UC Davis Health. The synergy of strategic plans and proximity of the Betty Irene Moore Hall — just across the street from UC Davis Medical Center — offer a new opportunity to create new models for nursing care and contribute to better health outcomes.
A 2016 report from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing calls for a paradigm shift in how nursing leaders in academia and practice work together and with other leaders in higher education and clinical practice. Authors argue that “only by doing so can we realize the full benefits of academic nursing in this new era in which integration and collaboration are essential to success.”
The framework includes the strengths of each unit and their collective potential to equitably provide unparalleled care across California, transforming lives and communities. Nursing and medicine faculty educate students about how to deliver excellent care team experiences and patient experiences that meet the needs and expectations of patients.
“We, in partnership with the UC Davis School of Medicine and collaboration with our health system colleagues, are building care teams for tomorrow,” says Dean Stephen Cavanagh. “We are becoming an indispensable partner through our collaboration in classrooms and clinics, thus enabling the entire system, and those we serve, to thrive.”
Cavanagh says that the school’s expertise in leading those teams and adding value with advanced practice providers are critical to achieve the long-term goal of developing a regional system of care that advances health equity and addresses disparities. Ultimately, the ones who benefit are the patients cared for and the communities served.
