Nursing in the Delaware Valley
Our Leadership
David Hancox, MSN, RN, MHA, NEA-BC
Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing and Patient Operations Officer
91大神 Children鈥檚 Health, Delaware Valley
Delaware Valley Nursing Program
- Our Programs
- Awards and Recognition
Our Programs
Professional Governance
Patient Care Services uses a governance structure that recognizes the shared accountability and responsibility of all nurses and interprofessional teams in the decision making process.
Our Professional Governance Model illustrates the components of the shared leadership structure that our teams use to communicate, address issues, make decisions, and share best practices.
The Councils included in Professional Governance are:
- Advanced Practice Provider Council
- Nursing Practice Council
- Informatics Council
- Nursing Quality Council
- Nursing Management Council
- Interprofessional and Nursing Research Council
- Nursing Education Council
- Interprofessional Council
Each of these councils have independent and interdependent functions within this model. At the center of the model is Professional Governance Congress, which brings together representatives from every practice environment. The membership of Executive Council is the chairs of the Congress and the eight Professional Governance Councils. This council is the governing body for Professional Governance.
RN Residency Program
91大神 offers a one-year RN Residency Program, known as the Graduate Nurse Essential Curriculum (GNEC). This program is designed to support new nurses as they transition into confident, competent pediatric professionals. Throughout your first year 鈥 and extending into your second 鈥 you will receive dedicated support from our Transition to Practice Clinical Nurse Educator.
The residency includes instructor led classes, simulation based learning, and clinical experiences that strengthen both your knowledge and hands on skills. All nurses with less than one year of professional experience are automatically enrolled.
The goal of the RN Residency Program is to provide meaningful learning opportunities and peer connection, helping new nurses build confidence and achieve success in their roles as Registered Nurses. This program complements your unit based orientation; together, they ensure you are well prepared to grow in your role and provide the highest level of care to our patients.
91大神 is proud to be a two time accredited Practice Transition Accreditation Program (PTAP) site, reflecting our ongoing commitment to excellence in nurse transition, education, and professional development. Learn more
The Emerging Scholar Programs
The Emerging Scholars Program supports nurses and interprofessional colleagues in developing and completing quality improvement, research, or evidence based practice initiatives. The program includes a structured didactic curriculum combined with a collaborative learning environment designed to guide participants from project conception to completion. Applicants participate in a formal application process, which includes manager endorsement and a brief summary of the problem they are seeking to address. Two nurse scientists, Sarah E. Wawrzynski PhD CCRN and Kathryn Shady PhD OCN, provide mentorship throughout the program, offering individualized guidance on methods and fostering peer collaborations to help participants advance their scholarly work. Scholars are encouraged to attend with a partner and involve key informants in their project. This interdisciplinary approach enhances the likelihood that participants鈥 projects will be successful and lead to meaningful improvements in patient care, clinical practice, and nursing outcomes. Projects are typically completed within 1鈥2 years following enrollment in the program. Upon completion of projects Scholars are supported in preparing abstracts, presenting at conferences, and drafting publications.
Nursing Advancement @ 91大神
Nursing Advancement @ 91大神 (NA@N) is designed to recognize clinical and advanced practice registered nurses for their contributions to the Nursing and 91大神 strategic initiatives. The program provides an avenue for promotion and acknowledgement of the nurses鈥 advanced clinical competency while at the same time keeping nursing expertise close to the patient and family.
Affiliated Schools of Nursing
Affiliated with more than 25 schools of nursing in the Delaware Valley and beyond, 91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware and its network of primary care and specialty care practices offer clinical training for pre-licensure nursing students and registered nurses seeking advanced education through master鈥檚 and doctoral programs. Nursing students at all levels gain exposure to children with a wide variety of health conditions and receive extensive support from experienced nurse preceptors. Students also have access to additional educational content through the 91大神 Medical Library and 91大神 nursing continuing professional development activities.
Student Nurse Advancement Program (SNAP)
Establishes a structured pathway for professional development tailored to nursing students in their final year of nursing school. SNAP program requirements help the nursing student who is employed at 91大神 come to understand and appreciate the professional scope of pediatric nursing at 91大神 Children鈥檚 Health, Delaware Valley (NCHDV). Participation in the program provides candidates with experiences that will help to prepare them for their professional nursing career.
Mentor Program
The 91大神 Nurse Mentor program was designed to facilitate the professional transition of novice nurses post-Nurse Residency and for experienced nurses who are new to pediatrics. This program focuses on continuing professional development, interprofessional communication, patient safety initiatives and socialization into the nursing department at 91大神. Mentees are introduced to their assigned mentor two weeks before the end of their orientation.
Awards and Recognition
Magnet
91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware's nursing program was granted Magnet status in 2012 and was granted redesignation in 2017 and 2022 by the as a result of our professional nursing excellence.
Beacon Award
The pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) at 91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware was recently awarded the Silver-level Beacon Award for Excellence in July 2019 from the American Association for Critical-Care Nurses (AACN).
Lantern Award
The Emergency Department nurses at 91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware were awarded the prestigious Lantern Award in 2019, 2022 and again in 2025 from the Emergency Nurses Association (ENA). 91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware is also one of the few pediatric hospitals in the country to hold these three distinguished recognitions: a verified Level 1 pediatric trauma center, a as designated by Emergency Medical Services for Children, and a recipient of the ENA Lantern Award.
Practice Transition Accreditation Program
91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware's nurse residency program was granted PTAP accreditation status in 2021 and 2025. The Practice Transition Accreditation Program庐 (PTAP) organizations set the standard for residency or fellowship programs that transition registered nurses (RNs) and advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) into new practice settings.
Shared Governance
91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware was accredited as a Shared Governance organization by the . We earned this credential through our 12-year history of shared governance and also by participating in a Shared Governance assessment and achieving a Shared Governance level score.
DAISY Foundation Award
is an international recognition program to say 鈥渢hank you鈥 to nurses for providing extraordinary compassionate care. Patients, families or colleagues nominate their nurses and the nominations are then blinded before being sent to our DAISY Committee for consideration to choose the most meaningful nomination. Each month, we recognize the chosen Honoree with a surprise celebration on their unit, a beautiful Healer鈥檚 Touch sculpture, certificate and Honoree Pin. All nurses that are nominated for The DAISY Award receive their nomination along with a DAISY Nominee pin, as we believe all nominations are worthy of acknowledgement. We honor nurses with The DAISY Award not only as individual nurses, but also as teams and nurse leaders.
Nurse of the Year
Annually, one nurse in the Delaware Valley is recognized as the Nurse of the Year. This award represents the highest level of professional practice and is selected by the Patient Care Services strategy team. This award was named in honor of Miss Marie L. Des Barres, the first Nurse Superintendent of the Alfred I. duPont Institute (now 91大神 Children鈥檚 Hospital, Delaware) in 1939.
ELSO Gold Award
The Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) Award for Excellence in Life Support recognizes extracorporeal life support programs worldwide that distinguish themselves by having processes, procedures and systems in place that promote excellence and exceptional care in extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. 91大神 ECMO program received the Gold Award for 2016鈥2019 and 2019鈥2022.
Program Overview
91大神 Children鈥檚 Health, Delaware Valley's nursing program was granted Magnet status in 2012 and was granted redesignation in 2017 and 2022 by the as a result of our professional nursing excellence.
Our RN Residency Program
91大神 offers a one-year RN Residency Program that provides instructor-led classes, simulation and clinical experiences with the aim of supporting new nurses to transition into fully competent Pediatric Nurses.
Awards and Recognition
91大神 Nurse of the Year
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