Other Titles
Rising Star Poster/Presentation
Abstract
Introduction: For nurses providing direct bedside care at Athens-Limestone Hospital (ALH) or Medical Village Tower (MVT), there is currently no Clinical Ladder Program (CLP). Purposes of this paper is to determine if there will be an increase interest in CLP education through utilization of a quick response (QR) code.
Problem: Nurses struggle with retention yet want to provide quality care and pursue professional development but are unaware of how to begin. CLPs offer networking, education, and interdisciplinary communication supporting retention.
PICOT: The PICOT question is for registered or licensed practical nurses providing direct bedside care at ALH/MVT (P), does the utilization of a quick response (QR) code for CLP education (I) result in higher CLP interest defined by a 20% or greater scan rate from nurses (O) compared to traditional professional development model (C) over a 4-week time frame (T)?
Methods: Information from the employee survey indicate staff desired ways to improve retention, professional development, and patient outcomes (C. Brown, personal communication, January 16, 2026). A committee was formed to initiate, modify, and maintain the CLP for their facility. Video technology education was provided with QR code utilization and data assembly through Google Forms.
Analysis of Evidence Review and Appraisal: Limitations and weaknesses are denoted in a SWOT analysis to include utilization of more advanced technology.
Results: Of the 46 eligible nurses, a total of 39 nurses responded in a 4-week time frame. This results in a scan rate of 85%.
Conclusion/Recommendations: Results indicate an interest rate greater than 20% with utilization of a QR code. Recommendations include continued observations to determine actual participation in the CLP. Recommendations include utilizing upgraded technology and identifiers. Lastly, utilize a Google Form submission mandatory to submit prior to accessing the video.
Notes
References:
1. Celano, T., Haskins-Kiefer, C., Betancourt, A. C., Kelly, K., Robinson, P. S., & Harris, S. L. (2025). Professional excellence program: Stepping up nurse retention through a system-wide clinical ladder. Nurse Leader, 102515. https://doi. 10.1016/j.mnl.2025.102515
2. Ahn, Y. S., & Choi, J. S. (2023). Nurses' perceptions of career ladder systems, job satisfaction and turnover intention: A cross sectional study. Nursing Open, 10(1), 195-201. https://doi. 10.1002/nop2.1294
Sigma Membership
Beta Phi at-Large
Type
Poster
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Translational Research/Evidence-based Practice
Keywords:
Career Development, Occupational Achievement, Professional and Management Development Training, Employee Retention, Clinical Ladder Program
Recommended Citation
Beard, Jeannie N.; Vann, Jennifer; Kane, Michele; and Brown, Catherine, "Evidence Based Clinical Ladder Program" (2026). International Nursing Research Congress (INRC). 104.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/inrc/2026/posters_2026/104
Conference Name
37th International Nursing Research Congress
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Conference Year
2026
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Invited Presentation
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2026-09-17
Evidence Based Clinical Ladder Program
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Introduction: For nurses providing direct bedside care at Athens-Limestone Hospital (ALH) or Medical Village Tower (MVT), there is currently no Clinical Ladder Program (CLP). Purposes of this paper is to determine if there will be an increase interest in CLP education through utilization of a quick response (QR) code.
Problem: Nurses struggle with retention yet want to provide quality care and pursue professional development but are unaware of how to begin. CLPs offer networking, education, and interdisciplinary communication supporting retention.
PICOT: The PICOT question is for registered or licensed practical nurses providing direct bedside care at ALH/MVT (P), does the utilization of a quick response (QR) code for CLP education (I) result in higher CLP interest defined by a 20% or greater scan rate from nurses (O) compared to traditional professional development model (C) over a 4-week time frame (T)?
Methods: Information from the employee survey indicate staff desired ways to improve retention, professional development, and patient outcomes (C. Brown, personal communication, January 16, 2026). A committee was formed to initiate, modify, and maintain the CLP for their facility. Video technology education was provided with QR code utilization and data assembly through Google Forms.
Analysis of Evidence Review and Appraisal: Limitations and weaknesses are denoted in a SWOT analysis to include utilization of more advanced technology.
Results: Of the 46 eligible nurses, a total of 39 nurses responded in a 4-week time frame. This results in a scan rate of 85%.
Conclusion/Recommendations: Results indicate an interest rate greater than 20% with utilization of a QR code. Recommendations include continued observations to determine actual participation in the CLP. Recommendations include utilizing upgraded technology and identifiers. Lastly, utilize a Google Form submission mandatory to submit prior to accessing the video.
Description
Nurses desire ways to improve retention, career growth, and patient outcomes. CLPs have shown to improve each of these concerns (Celano et al., 2025) and positively impact nurses’ and organizational advancement (Ahn & Choi, 2023). Video technology education was provided with a QR code to determine 20% or greater interest from nurses. An 85% scan rate was amassed. Limitations are denoted in a SWOT analysis, and recommendations include continued observations for exact CLP participation.