As a nurse, you are one of our strongest advocates for quality care and patient safety. And we salute your pride in-and dedication to-the practice of nursing. We want you to have every possible advantage in ensuring the best possible care for our members. The Inpatient Nursing Quality Indicators Program and the Inpatient Medication Improvement initiatives are examples of our commitment to quality and patient safety. By promoting safety in the work place, we generate better care while reinforcing our sense of teamwork. And that gives us all something to be proud of.

We also know that research has found a direct correlation between care quality and service quality. Nurses have more meaningful interactions, more frequently, and for longer periods of time than any other constituency in health care and as such have the greatest impact on the patient's service experience.

Nurses at Kaiser Permanente practice all three levels of care. The first level of care is competence. The second level of care is courtesy. Finally, there is the third level of caring, compassion. Compassion goes beyond common courtesy; it means attending to the patient in a way that demonstrates genuine concern. Authentic compassion and caring about each patient on a personal level is the most evident form of personal behavior in health care and our nurses are at the heart of care quality, patient safety, and service excellence at Kaiser Permanente.