RKU - Universitäts- und Rehabilitationskliniken Ulm, Germany, visiting Billings Clinic, Montana, the twinning partner of the Magnet4Europe study.

By Helene Maucher and Gabriele Grässer, Universitäts- und Rehabiliationskliniken Ulm (DE)

​As part of the participation in the Magnet4Europe study, 14 employees including nurses, experts, the CNO and CEO as well as the leadership team from the RKU in Ulm, Germany, visited the Billings Clinic in Montana, USA in February 2022. During its visit, the team was able to gain interesting insights into the daily work of the nurses and the teams of a Magnet hospital. The team of the RKU was impressed that the Billings Clinic practices much shorter inpatient stays and efficient discharge management. Patients undergoing hip arthroplasty can be discharged to outpatient care after only 2 days of inpatient stay. The structural differences were also particularly evident, with the focus on shared governance and transformational leadership. Working with Advanced Nursing Practitioners and Nursing Councils is already a matter of course and firmly established in the Billings Clinic.

In addition, the participants enjoyed the extraordinary hospitality of their colleagues from Montana. In an additional cultural program, they marveled together at the vastness of Yellowstone National Park, and many get-togethers in a pleasant atmosphere also led to lively exchanges.
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All in all, it can be said that the exchange with the American colleagues was very successful, and the colleagues were happy to pass on the many experiences and the spirit they gained back home to Ulm. The RKU is looking forward to welcoming the colleagues from Billings in Ulm in autumn this year.