If you’re a pediatric nurse, you chose your career because you’re dedicated to children’s health and wellbeing. Your path to the profession was rigorous, but now that you’ve arrived you have plenty of options available to you. For those who prefer to be part of a large organization with unlimited chances to make a difference in children’s lives, the remarkable Cook Children’s Health Care System is a great choice. The Dallas-based non-profit is comprised of several different companies and 60 locations, all of which are committed to what they call their Promise: to improve the well-being of every child in their care and communities.
Cook Children’s was established with just 30 beds as the Fort Worth Free Baby Hospital over 100 years ago. Established with the mission of providing care regardless of ability to pay, its entire infrastructure was donated. The hospital grew to add care for older children and adolescents, and was later renamed Fort Worth Children’s Hospital. It later merged with Cook Children’s Hospital, and eventually evolved into the Cook Children’s Health Care System which includes the Cook Children’s Medical Center, the Cook Children’s Physician Network, Cook Children’s Home Health, Cook Health Plan, Northeast Hospital, Cook Children’s Health Services, Cook Children’s Pediatric Surgery Center, Child Study Center Cook Children’s, and Cook Children’s Health Foundation. It ranks among the largest healthcare systems in the southwest, administering care in more than 1 million pediatric patient encounters per year.
Cook Children’s Promise has also evolved to embrace technology and collaboration in order to achieve its mission. In doing so, it has earned a reputation for commitment to evidence-based practice, leading-edge clinical research, and application of the best medical protocols and therapies, as well as commitment to patient and employee safety. Cook Children’s Medical Center is nationally ranked by U.S. News & World Report in six pediatric specialties (Pediatric Diabetes and Endocrinology, Cardiology, Pediatric Neurology and Neurosurgery, Pulmonology, Orthopedics, and Oncology). The hospital has also been recognized as one of the Top 100 Healthy Workplaces, received Magnet Designation for Nursing Excellence for the fourth consecutive time, and has received numerous awards for exceptional and innovative service. It has also been named to the elite Leapfrog Top Hospitals list numerous times based on responses to quality and safety surveys.
In addition to offering care to its patients and the broader community, Cook Children’s is an active and assertive advocate for multiple issues surrounding children’s wellbeing. Working on issues including affordable care for Texas children, health and human services, access to quality care, safety and prevention, affordable care, health and wellness, and legislation and political action. Among its most recent efforts is a new task force focused on adverse childhood experiences.
The hospital leads by example, encouraging its staff and the surrounding community to get involved and get engaged while providing more than $100,000,000 per year in community benefits. This includes uncompensated care and the creation of community outreach programs that provide affordable health care and the ability to live in safe and healthy neighborhoods. The hospital’s Community Health Outreach program collaborates with almost 300 partner organizations focused on safety and improving the health of at-risk children in the region.
Cook Children’s Hospital knows that its exceptional clinical care rests on the shoulders of its nurses, who focus on both the patient and their families. The 443-bed hospital emphasizes its shared values and commitment to patients in many ways, including its recognition of staff for exemplary professional practice and its support of nurses’ career advancement and leadership. The hospital’s nursing professional practice model promotes a culture of safety surrounding quality patient- and family-centered care. Respect for individuality, collaboration, professional growth and development, and innovation are all rewarded and reinforced, as is the organizational commitment to personal and professional accountability and integrity.
Nurses considering a career at Cook have limitless opportunities for work settings and specialty areas. As the hospital that serves nearly half of the state of Texas, it is home to a Level IV NICU, is a Level II Trauma Center, has a Level II Emergency Room that sees 285,000 ER and UCC visits per year, and has a Level I Children’s Surgery Center. The hospital, which sees patients from over 42 countries, was the first pediatric facility in the nation to receive full accreditation through the Society for Simulation in Healthcare. It is also the hub around which 530,000 pediatric office visits occur each year.
Cook Children’s understands that the quality of its patient care depends upon its pool of highly trained staff, and to retain and recruit top talent they offer a generous and competitive compensation package, comprehensive benefits, and other thoughtful and convenient perks that make nurses’ lives easier. Both full and half-time employees are offered comprehensive health care plans that automatically include pharmacy coverage. Those same employees also receive a comprehensive PPO dental plan and a vision plan, as well as access to an innovative teleconferencing non emergency medical service via phone or online video.
Full time employees are provided with life insurance and long-term disability insurance, and full and half-time employees are provided with paid short-term disability plans as well. Financially, all employees are able to make pre-tax or post-tax contributions to the facility’s 403(b) retirement plan, with matching contributions based on employment status, contribution level, and years of service. Employees can also receive matching funds in the facility’s 401(a) plan. The hospital offers tuition reimbursement after six months to both full and half-time employees for job-related courses, allowing nurses to pursue advanced professional credentials that further their career and earnings capacity.
Cook Children’s recognizes the challenges that face healthcare professionals working in a high-stress, high-emotion environment. To support emotional wellbeing, they offer a program that provides immediate professional assistance for all personal and emotional problems, as well as an Occupational Health Clinic and a voluntary employee wellness initiative. Finally, employees receive paid time off, financial assistance to adoptive parents, the Bright Horizons Care Advantage Program to provide family care arrangements, concierge and travel services, and even pet health insurance. Clearly, Cook Children’s works hard to make sure that their nurses know that they are valued.
Pediatric nurses interested in advancing in their careers can begin their search on Incredible Health’s career page. In just minutes you can set up a profile and begin hearing from high-quality employers whose opportunities match your preferences.
