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Registered nurses (RNs) pursuing a nursing career in Dallas should explore opportunities at Methodist Dallas Medical Center, ranked in 2022-2023 as the city’s No. 5 hospital by U.S. News and World Report. This award-winning Magnet facility offers exciting specialties for nursing practice and an inclusive environment that encourages nurses to achieve their full potential.
This employer spotlight delves into the mission and values of Methodist Dallas to help you decide whether it’s a good match for your career development. We also examine some of its specialties, employee benefits, nursing opportunities and education initiatives.
Background of Methodist Dallas
A group of United Methodist ministers and civic leaders founded Methodist Dallas Medical Center to provide care in an underserved area of the city. The facility opened on Christmas Eve in 1927 as Dallas Methodist Hospital with 100 beds. It expanded steadily over the years, adding a trauma program and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in 1979 and a transplant program in 1980. In 2014, the hospital opened the 248,000-square-foot Charles A. Sammons Trauma and Critical Care Tower, which cares for 90,000 patients a year and provides Level 1 trauma care services.
Methodist Dallas is now a major medical center with 592 licensed beds and provides a full spectrum of care in over 100 specialties. Some of its renowned centers and institutes include:
- Level 1 Trauma Center
- Level 3 NICU
- Transplant Institute for adult liver, kidney and pancreas transplants
- Comprehensive Cancer Program
- Sam and Anne Kesner Heart Center
- John R. Ford Center for Digestive Health
- Methodist Joint Academy
- Advanced Primary Stroke Center
- Women and Children’s Services
According to its website, the hospital’s staff of 2,500 made a difference in the lives of 16,665 inpatients during the 12 months preceding April 2022. The team also provided services for 154,325 outpatient visitors.
To ensure the community receives care from highly trained professionals, Methodist Dallas serves as a teaching hospital for physicians, nurses and pharmacists. The Golden Cross Academic Clinic, the hospital’s outpatient center, is the principal teaching facility for the Methodist Graduate Medical Education program.
Methodist Dallas Health System
Methodist Dallas Medical Center is the flagship of the Methodist Dallas Health System, which serves Dallas and North Texas. Its network includes 12 hospitals, over 24 clinics and highly respected teaching and research programs. With more than 10,000 employees, Becker’s Hospital Review recognized the health system as one of the top 150 places to work in healthcare in 2022. For 15 consecutive years, the Dallas Business Journal has named Methodist Health among the city’s best places to work.
Mission and Values
Methodist Health System is a faith-based organization with a covenant agreement with the North Texas Conference of the United Methodist Church. The health system’s mission is “to improve and save lives through compassionate, quality healthcare.” The following principles are at the heart of its work:
- Compassionately putting others first
- Offering a welcoming and caring environment
- Courageous creativity and commitment to quality
- Unwavering honesty and integrity
- Celebration of individual and team accomplishment
- Dedicated to learning and excellence
Commitment to Diversity
Striving to reflect Dallas’s vibrant communities, Methodist Health System is committed to creating an inclusive and equitable workplace. This initiative became especially important when 2021 data compiled by WalletHub claimed Dallas to be the fourth most diverse city in America.
Several recent achievements reflect Methodist Health’s efforts to embrace diversity throughout the organization, including:
- Forbes magazine named Methodist Health one of the best employers for diversity in the United States in 2022.
- The Healthcare Diversity Council recognized the health system as a Top Healthcare Diversity Organization in 2019.
- DiversityInc. placed Methodist Health on its list of the most diverse health systems and hospitals nationwide in 2018.
Methodist has an Intentional Inclusion and Diversity Council to oversee its diversity programs, encompassing patient care, recruitment, education and supplier selection. For example, staff members receive education in areas such as LGBT patient care, social determinants of health and cultural competencies.
Honors and Recognition
In addition to being named the No. 5 hospital in Dallas-Fort Worth on U.S. News and World Report’s Best Hospitals list, Methodist Dallas Medical Center ranked as high performing for the following adult treatments:
- Colon Cancer Surgery
- Heart Failure
- Kidney Failure
- Back Surgery (Spinal Fusion)
- Stroke
- Hip Fracture
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
- Pneumonia
Methodist Dallas achieved Magnet status from the American Nurses Credentialing Center in 2019, the highest distinction for professional nursing. Less than 10% of U.S. hospitals earn this honor, reflecting the facility’s rigorous patient care and nursing practice standards.
The hospital is a leader among Dallas hospitals in many areas, receiving a Platinum Performance Achievement Award from the American College of Cardiology for excellence in heart attack care. The Leapfrog Group recognized Methodist Dallas Medical Center with a Grade A in Hospital Safety. It was also the first hospital in the United States with Joint Commission certification for pancreatic surgery and the first Texas hospital certified for pancreatic cancer.
Pursuing a Nursing Career at Methodist Dallas
Nurses can explore a variety of clinical interests at Methodist Dallas, working as part of healthcare teams delivering innovative care. Some of the many areas where nurses are most needed include the following departments.
Emergency Department Nursing
If you thrive in the fast-paced setting of emergency, consider a job in Methodist Dallas Medical Center’s trauma center, one of only three Dallas hospitals with Level 1 trauma facilities. The hospital is also Joint Commission-certified as an Advanced Primary Stroke Center.
Critical Care Nursing
Nurses passionate about critical care can work in interventional cardiology, trauma and the ICU. The Joint Commission recognizes the hospital as a top performer in heart attack, heart failure, pneumonia, surgical care, stroke and perinatal care. RNs can transition to this specialty from other areas through a critical care nursing residency.
Medical-Surgical Nursing
A position as a med-surg nurse may be the right fit for skilled and compassionate RNs wanting to care for patients with various medical issues or who are preparing for or recovering from surgery. New graduates can build their competencies in this specialty through a med-surg residency.
Operating Room Nursing
Operating room (OR) nurses are part of surgical teams working to improve or save patient lives using advanced technology. Methodist Dallas was the first Dallas hospital to perform a robotic kidney auto-transplantation utilizing the da Vinci Surgical System. In the operating room at Methodist Dallas, you might assist with minimally invasive brain and spine surgeries, organ transplants and joint replacements.
Women and Children’s Nursing
If you’re passionate about the health and well-being of women and their babies, consider a role in the hospital’s women’s services department. The department has a Level 3 NICU and an accredited Breast Imaging Center of Excellence. It also provides maternity care, childbirth education, breastfeeding support, digital mammography and breast MRI.
Specialty Nursing
Outside of direct patient care, nurses can help improve patient outcomes and nursing best practices using evidence-based research. Areas of focus include case management, infection prevention, education, quality and patient experience.
Benefits of Working at Methodist Dallas
When considering nursing jobs at this or other Dallas hospitals, you should ensure you’re fairly compensated by researching average RN salaries in Dallas. Take into account additional perks that can help you build financial security.
Methodist Dallas employees can access an array of benefits, including:
- Choice of Medical Plans
- Prescription, Dental and Vision Care
- Life, Disability and Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance
- Retirement Plans with Matched Contributions
- Flexible Spending Accounts
- Flexible Paid Time Off
- Extended Illness Benefits
- Leave of Absences
- Employee Assistance Programs
- Wellness Programs
- Gym Memberships
- Prenatal, Weight Management and Tobacco Cessation Programs
- Employee Discounts
Nursing Education Programs
One of the best ways to thrive in your next nursing job is to choose a workplace that inspires you to grow personally and professionally. Methodist Dallas provides an enriching environment for RNs to practice and elevate their skills, with formal learning opportunities and financial support to further their education.
Nursing Externships
The hospital provides a chance for senior-level nursing students to gain clinical experience. Externships are available in various specialties, such as women’s services, labor and delivery, telemetry, ICU, emergency, surgery and medical-surgical nursing.
Nurse Residency
If you’re just starting your nursing career and have less than a year’s experience, apply for a nurse residency. Methodist Dallas offers this program in February, July and October. It provides classroom instruction and clinical rotation to help you gain the skills and knowledge to move into independent nursing practice. The hospital offers residencies in several areas, including med-surg, critical care, emergency, OR, labor and delivery and NICU.
Education and Tuition Reimbursement
The hospital organizes free courses and seminars for nurses working at Methodist. The Methodist Health System Foundation also funds nursing scholarships, with applications available every spring. Nurses pursuing BSN degrees and advanced certifications also have access to tuition reimbursement.
Travel Nursing in Dallas
If you’re not ready to relocate to Texas but want to experience living and working in Dallas or other areas of the state, consider travel nursing. You can pursue your nursing career at Methodist Dallas Medical Center or with another top Dallas healthcare employer on a temporary contract.
As a travel nurse, you care for patients where your skills are most in demand. Then, after you clock out, discover the city at your own pace. Sample local cuisine, explore the lively Dallas Arts District, cheer on the Dallas Cowboys and revel in the beauty of Cedar Ridge Preserve.
Hospital Location and Amenities
Methodist Dallas Medical Center is southwest of downtown Dallas, just over the Trinity River. Although commute times vary, the Dallas Regional Chamber reports that the average commute in the region is 28.6 minutes.
Methodist Dallas is easily accessible from Union Station on the free Dallas Streetcar service, which has a stop on Beckley near the hospital. Several on-site parking lots are designated for employee parking if you prefer to drive.
The hospital boasts a cafeteria on the second floor, a coffee shop on the first floor and vending machines in various locations. The nearby Oak Cliff neighborhood is a vibrant area and home to the Bishop Arts District and numerous restaurants and boutiques to stop by on your way to or from work.
Contact Information
Methodist Dallas Medical Center
1441 North Beckley Avenue
Dallas, TX 75203
(214) 947-8181
Feature Photo Credit: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
