A fundamental requirement of an organization with Magnet designation is to have an effective professional governance structure.
Professional Governance is a decision-making model focused on empowering the nurses who care for the patients, the front line of decision making.
The Professional Governance councils are comprised of clinical nurses, clinical nurse educators, clinical mentors and clinical nurse specialists with representation from each nursing unit.
Inova Mount Vernon Hospital’s structure consists of five councils. These councils meet each month and are led by members of our clinical nursing team. The councils are the decision-making bodies in which our clinical nurses participate to determine goals, process improvement and other patient care and professional practice objectives. These initiatives are then brought back and shared with our patient care units through established unit-based councils (UBCs).
The UBCs provide decision-making resources at the unit level, encouraging all clinical nurses to participate in improving and developing their professional practice. The five Inova Mount Vernon Hospital professional governance councils have specific areas of focus:
The Care Site Council (CSC) communicates and coordinates the work of the councils that report on a rotating basis, as do all nursing units and departments in the organization. The chair or designee of each UBC is a member of the care site council. The CSC also communicates and coordinates the dissemination of information from the Inova Health System Nursing Congress and provides oversight for all local professional governance activities.
The Clinical Excellence and Patient Experience Council analyzes and disseminates nurse sensitive quality data and provides recommendations for improvement to care site council. This council examines IMVH’s quality and patient satisfaction data, supporting and facilitating the work of the unit practice councils in linking work processes to outcomes. IMVH consistently outperforms the national benchmarks on all nursing-sensitive indicators including falls with injury, HAPIs, CAUTIs, and CLABSIs. In January 2026, the council celebrated having the lowest patent falls rate in the Inova Health System.
The Professional Development Council supports and facilitates nurses pursuing certification, clinical ladder advancement, a BSN, and other advanced degrees. It leads and oversees the DAISY nurse recognition program, reviews RN satisfaction data, and provides professional development and recognition activities for IMVH nurses.
Members continue to promote professional practice opportunities including certification, advanced degrees and participation in the ADVANCE Clinical Ladder. In 2025:
The Night Shift Council’s overall goal is to support patient care on the night shift, to promote the job satisfaction of nurses who work on night shift and to improve the nurse practice environment. It is composed of representatives from all practice areas throughout the organization. The monthly council meeting is well attended with at least 50 staff members participating each month. There is always a senior leader update and some educational sessions followed by a discussion on topics relevant for night shift. One topic has centered around increasing certification of night shift nurses.
The Research and Evidence-Based Practice Council supports and facilitates the initiatives of Inova Mount Vernon Hospital nurses who are undertaking evidence-based projects and research.
In 2023-2025, clinical nurses led and/or participated in two nursing research studies. The council also provides monthly lunch and learns around topics to educate nurses on EBP and research principles, share current project outcomes, and review Inova supporting policies for nursing research.