Baptist Health Paducah is a three-time Pathway to Excellence® designated organization. We pride ourselves on achieving this prestigious designation by meeting the highest standards as a best place to work for nurses. Our hospital serves Paducah and its surrounding states and counties with a level of care that puts the well-being of its employees and the surrounding community above all else. As a Pathway to Excellence designated organization we are well recognized as a desirable place to practice a career in nursing and enjoy professional opportunities that may not be possible at a smaller facility. Each quarter we seek nominations for our DAISY® Award for Extraordinary Nurses to recognize those on our staff who go above and beyond for our patients and the BEE award for our non-nursing staff.

Some additional benefits to working at Baptist Health Paducah include:

• Free onsite education, tuition reimbursement and loan repayment for those who qualify. 
• Transition to Practice program, designed to transition new graduates from student to competent professional nurses with tools and skills needed to provide safe, quality care.
• Onsite childcare center. 
• Mentorship opportunities in our Nursing Mentorship Program.
• Student loan resources to manage student debt.

Education

Baptist Health Paducah places high importance on supporting nurses who wish to further their education. We are an accredited provider of continuing education programs by the Kentucky Board of Nursing and regularly offer continuing education opportunities for our nurses. 

We offer many different types of education to our employees, including on site education at no cost, and provide an education assistance program that reimburses up to $6,000 per year for full-time employees, after 6 months of employment, who wish to advance their education (prorated for part-time employees).

Some of the most common types of education we offer are:

• Certification courses: Basic Life Support (BLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS), Trauma Nurse Core Course (TNCC), are offered on a regular basis. Instructor courses in TNCC and ENPC are offered yearly.
• Workshop offerings: Various topics for nurses and allied health professionals are presented as individual programs throughout the year.
• Emergency Nurses Association courses.
• ANCC Success Pays® Program: helps nurses achieve certification without financial risk.
• Onsite continuing education programs.

Career Advancement Opportunities

Career Advancement Opportunities- leadership development- through Leadership Academy, Charge Nurse classes, preceptor program and classes, Professional Nurse Development Program (PNDP), specialty classes in the areas of cardiac arrhythmias, chest tubes, care of the critical patient, etc.

• Enhanced compensation options. Pay differentials for night, evening, and weekend shifts, and a clinical ladder differential for experience and education.
• Work-life balance. Nurses enjoy self-scheduling options, offering flexibility and autonomy to balance work and life.
• Very generous Foundation donors that support our Nursing Excellence Fund. These funds can be used for continuing education through the application process.
• Partnerships with local schools of nursing. WKCTC and Murray State in particular. Have a 3 year grant with MSU for a dedicated education unit that offers in depth clinical experiences for nursing students and professional development for bedside nurses to be adjunct clinical faculty and earn a stipend.

Pathway to Excellence

In May, 2024, we achieved our third Pathway to Excellence Designation. Pathway to Excellence (PTE) designation by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), a branch of the American Nurses Association, is the premier designation for healthy work environments – recognizes health care organizations that demonstrate a commitment to establishing the foundation of a healthy workplace for staff. The ANCC Pathway to Excellence Framework depicts the six standards that are essential elements in developing a positive practice environment for nursing across healthcare settings. Those standards are; Shared Decision-Making, Leadership, Safety, Quality, Well-Being, and Professional Development.

Pathway Standards impact a range of factors that influence bottom-line results, such as employee turnover, job satisfaction and engagement, productivity and teamwork, nursing-sensitive quality indicators, errors and safety events, and patient satisfaction. We remain as committed as ever to nursing excellence in a practice arena where nurse autonomy is encouraged, evidence-based practice is desired, and professional development and growth is nurtured.

DAISY Award

DAISY Awards are given out each quarter to a nurse who exemplifies the following:

• Dedicated to patient care and satisfaction. 
• Attitude remains positive and demonstrates professionalism in the workplace. 
• Interested in the needs of the patient and family. 
• Stands for and demonstrates the caring ideals, mission and values of Baptist Health Paducah. 
• Yearly evaluation is in good standing. Employee is viewed by peers as a team player.

Patients, visitors, nurses, physicians and employees may nominate a deserving nurse for this award, which is given each quarter. The DAISY Award was established by the DAISY Foundation in memory of J. Patrick Barnes who died at 33 from ITP, an auto-immune disease. The Barnes family was awestruck by the clinical skills, caring and compassion of the nurses who cared for Patrick, so they created this national award to say thank you to nurses everywhere.

BEE Award

Our BEE Award for exceptional team members honors and recognizes patient care team members, outside of nursing, who go above and beyond to provide excellent patient experiences. These team members exemplify the values of Baptist Health in the respect, excellence and compassion they offer to our patients and their families.

Additional Awards & Accreditations

• American Nurses Credentialing Center ® (Pathway to Excellence). Third designation.
• Best Places to Work in Kentucky for 12 years. 
• CMS 5-star rating.
• Amy Osbron BSN, RN, CPHQ and Joyce Woods BSN, RN, Accepted the Lighthouse award for “Staying Alive: Utilizing Technology to Improve Resuscitation Quality.
• National Distinction of Excellence- American College of Cardiology.
• Accredited Chest Pain Center-American College of Cardiology.
• Accredited Heart Failure Program.
• Accredited Stroke Center.