CHOC Children’s Hospital’s Emergency Department Earns National Honor

The Julia and George Argyros Emergency Department at CHOC Children’s Hospital is one of only three emergency departments in California—and 22 in the country— to be named a 2017 Lantern Award recipient from the Emergency Nurses Association. The honor recognizes emergency departments across the nation for demonstrating excellence and innovation in leadership, practice, education, advocacy and research.

Recipients of the award went through a rigorous application process, during which they had to provide outcome metrics, as well as descriptive examples that highlighted the following:



Practice – qualities that foster professional pride, confidence and a community of support for emergency nurses
Leadership – operational improvement initiatives, including new systems and processes that positively impact department operations
Education – quality and accessible education that instills knowledge and enhances competencies
Advocacy – efforts that enhance the emergency nursing profession and quality patient care
Research – quality improvement research and the evaluation of clinical outcomes
“Our team is dedicated to providing safe, quality care based on evidence-based practices. We are honored to have our commitment recognized by the Emergency Nurses Association, and will continue to push ourselves to provide the best possible emergency medicine and trauma services to the children and families who depend on us,” explains Frank Maas, RN, BSN, MBA, director, Julia and George Argyros Emergency Department.

The 22,000-square-foot, full-service Julia and George Argyros Emergency Department is exclusively dedicated to the treatment of pediatric patients. It features 31 treatment rooms, including several rapid evaluation and discharge rooms and three triage suites. The department will be presented with its Lantern Award at the Emergency Nursing Conference 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri later this summer.

The Lantern Award honors the legacy of Florence Nightingale, referred to as the “Lady of the Lamp” for her actions during the Crimean War. Working throughout the night, she would bring a lantern to help her see and tend to the wounded soldiers. She is credited with changing nursing from an untrained job to a skilled, science-based profession.