AACN Hangzou Chapter Member Visits from China

April YiYu Zhuang, critical-care nurse director at Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital (SRRSH) in China is no stranger to NTI, but that does not diminish her excitement to be here for a third year. Managing a stressful intensive care unit in a 900-bed teaching hospital is a difficult and challenging career. Coming to NTI gives her the chance to see what the U.S. healthcare system has to offer critical care nurses and incorporate some of those advancements in her unit.

“Due to limited resources for critical care in China, AACN is really a great resource to us,” she said. “It keeps us informed in mainland China.”

Branching Out

The Hangzou Chapter of AACN China, of which Zhuang has been a member since its inception, formed in 1997 and has already gained recognition with the receipt of president’s awards in 1998 and 1999. Additionally, in 2006, SRRSH was recognized with Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation, which Zhuang says could not have been accomplished without the help of the AACN.

“This is the first and only public hospital in mainland China with this accreditation,” she said. “We received a lot of credit for being an AACN chapter because our knowledge is informative and advanced, so the surveyor was very impressed with what we have done.”

The Hangzou Chapter received further acknowledgement as the home chapter for 2008 AACN research grant recipient, Chen Xiang Ping.

Bright Future

Currently, there are no AACN sponsored conferences or events held in China, but Zhuang is confident that with the rising credibility and recognition of the Hangzou Chapter this may change in the future. Despite the differences in healthcare systems between China and the United States, SRRSH has had the opportunity to work with nurses from Loma Linda University Medical Center in California (LLUMC), specifically medical specialists and management experts, over the last few years.

“LLUMC has been a great help to my hospital, especially when we were doing the Joint Commission survey,” Zhuang said. “They have been great resources and a great help. I think one of the reasons we passed accreditation was because we have been able to uphold LLUMC standards.”

These efforts add to Zhuang’s enthusiasm about joining forces with AACN chapters outside of China to advance the critical-care nursing profession on a global scale and supplement the collaborative efforts that have been successful with LLUMC.

“I decided to attend NTI this year because you can’t miss this outstanding conference,” Zhuang said, citing the great resources and unlimited educational opportunities. “For me, I think I gain a lot from NTI and AACN. Being an AACN member has been of great value to my career.”