Introduction I am very fortunate to have worked over 17 years in the nursing profession. I currently work in the Critical Care Unit at Hendrick Medical Center in Abilene, Texas. Recently, I have become concerned with the legislative impact on health care policies and I am writing in regards to the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) Healthy Work Environments Initiative. Given your background in the nursing profession, I know you will be able to sympathize with the unhealthy work environments some nurses must face and the negative impact it has on patient safety and workplace errors. The AACN has identified a major area for improvement and this organization encourages nurses to play a role in developing and promoting healthy …show more content…
In addition, nursing turnover has been reported to range from 15-36% per year, a much higher rate than other health care professionals. Several professional organizations in nursing have identified and established criteria for a healthy workplace. As a result, the 8 Essential Attributes of a Healthy Work Environment was developed to reflect what staff nurses perceive to be the key to a healthy workplace. Examples of a few of the 8 essentials are supportive nurse managers, adequate staffing and a culture in which concern for patients is paramount. Evidence has shown that all 8 essentials are positively correlated and therefore all 8 need to be addressed by the improvement strategies. Currently there is not a health care policy in place either requiring medical facilities to incorporate the 8 essentials into their systems or formally recognizing those that …show more content…
Research has shown that safe patient care is directly related to the quality of the staff nurse’s work environments and favorable conditions optimize patient safety, improve staff’s physical and mental wellbeing, and increase retention, while decreasing burnout, turnover, and job stress of the workforce. Achieving health work environments requires baseline perception of the staff nurses’ current workplace, implementation of improvement strategies, and confirmation of the success of those strategies by unit nurses. Stakeholder Analysis The Healthy Work Environment Initiative will directly affect everyone who enters any health care facility. The AACN standards have raised the bar for work environments in healthcare and made it clear that excellence is an ongoing journey that ultimately benefits patients, families, and those who care for them. Healthy work environments are essential to ensure patient safety, enhance staff recruitment and retention, and maintain an organization’s financial viability.
AACN Baccalaureate Essentials The AACN Baccalaureate has nine essentials, essential number two “Basic organizational and systems leadership for quality care and patient safety” applies to baby boomer nurses retiring and leaving a big gap in the workforce. With baby boomers leaving the workforce, there will be a demand for nurses and the supply of nurses available will be short, young, and inexperienced. This will affect the quality of care and safety of the patient, which is why this issue needs more attention. Working towards preventing this issue needs to start now as nurses can’t wait till it happens.
Objective One During my clinical day three, I demonstrated entry-level competence in professional nursing practice in caring for patients with multiple and/or complex unmet human needs. I addressed safety needs, safety in medication administration, effective communication, and surveillance for my patients. First, I addressed safety needs my ensuring the appropriate safety measures were implemented for the patients. Some of the safety measures included, wearing non-skid socks, wearing a yellow armband which indicated fall risk, keeping the bed in lowest position, two side rails up, bed locked, and the call light within reach.
The overall goal of an ACO, which may include physicians, hospitals, and other healthcare professionals, is to provide quality care while meeting defined outcomes and indicators. Overall, the implementation of the ACO should allow for decreased healthcare expenditures. The concept of the ACO is not without barrier to implementation; it affects all healthcare providers and requires extensive interdisciplinary work and increased communication. Nursing practice is influenced by an ACO; staff nurses will be influenced and advanced nurses will be affected. Overall, additional responsibility will be placed on the role of the
Finkelman, describes power as the ability to influence others and their decisions (2012). Based on Finkelman’s description of power I would consider myself as a powerful nurse. Often as a registered nurse, I have to utilize the power of persuasion through education and patient empowerment to convince and promoted healthy behavior changes to decrease re-hospitalizations. Furthermore, as an employee I am on a quality and improvement committee that meets monthly to identify ways the hospital can improve quality care, reduce cost, and implement evidenced bases cares/interventions. In comparison with my previous hospital employers it is my personal opinion that my employer is considered a safe place for nursing when it comes to patient to
Nursing Bedside Reporting, Patient Safety, And Satisfaction Scores The American Nurses Association estimates that up to 80% of serious medical errors involve miscommunication between caregivers when patients are transferred or handed off during shift report (ANA 2012). In the nursing profession change of shifts require the successful transfer of information from nurse to nurse to prevent medical errors and adverse events (Sullivan, 2010). Research shows that when patients are included and engaged in their health care there is greater potential to lead to measurable improvements in safety and quality of care.
NUR 300 Case Study Since the recognition of patient safety as a healthcare priority by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2007, healthcare organizations have put many efforts in ensuring the quality of services and the safety of the patients. The Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) are recommendations meant to equip nurses with the necessary skills, knowledge, and attitudes that are critical to the improvement of patient care quality and safety (Sherwood & Barnsteiner, 2013). In the current case, Mary has new nurses who want to become part of her team in the ICU. Integrating new nurses into the ICU department requires helping them on how to efficiently execute their mandates without compromising on the quality benchmarks in place
In order for the future of health care to change, changes must begin at the top with stakeholders, the hierarchy and nursing management, nurses as leaders within their organizations. According to Disch J. (2008), nurses as leaders within their organizations need to also step forward, CNEs have the background, perspective, and platform to help their organizations seriously tackle safety issues that jeopardize patient care and that face nurses and their colleagues daily, and are the essential building blocks of all health systems--and
What was once thought of as a profession driven by compassion and the desire to help those in need has now become filled with weary burnt out nurses who have lost sight of their purpose. Stress has caused them to distance themselves from the principles nursing is built upon. Our health care system needs to be revamped to improve the quality of care being administered. Nurses can be proactive and take steps to avoid burning out but, our health care administrators have to take matters into their hands because they have the capacity to initiate change. They must realize the gravity of the situation and take an offensive position to make a stand against the crisis of nursing
Nurses make a moral commitment to care for all patients and take responsibility for the healthcare environment they work in. In the acute care setting, the bedside nurse plays an important role in improving patient satisfaction and maintaining a safe environment. Currently, patient satisfaction during hospitalization is measured by data collected from the HCAHPS
Nurses play an essential role in the healthcare industry. The nurse workforce is made up of licensed nurses: registered nurses (RNs), licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs), along with nurse aides. Registered nurses are responsible for assessments of patients’ needs, development of care plans, medication administration, and treatments, while licensed vocational nurses perform specific care under the delegation of the registered nurses and supervisions. Nursing aides perform activities of daily living (unskilled attention) to the patient. Adequate nursing staffing is essential to both patient care and outcomes, also to the retention of nurses while inadequate staffing creates problems for both the patients and
The Affordable Care Act has shifted focus on health and wellness of patient populations urging hospitals to do a community needs assessment and come up with a strategy to address these needs. Hospitals most often partner with community and professional organizations to address the health need (Stempniak, 2014). This is an example of how the four spheres are all interrelated. Nurses are at the heart of this movement, providing the necessary skills, experience and expertise to address the needs of the population being served (Shamian,
A calm and collective nurse can promote safety and prevent workplace
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has a strong stance on nurses and leadership. They believe that nurses are a vital component to health care system and nurses in leadership roles can have a positive impact on such. Nurses are in all sorts of roles within the health care systems ranging from a staff nurse, nurse managers, to advance practice, all the way to congress (Finkelman & Kenner, 2013). In addition, they even serve in the boardroom within some health care organizations. Leadership doesn’t necessarily mean a nurse in a manager position, but a nurse who has an influence on staff.
Navi, It is unfortunate that the consequence of Julie Thao’s decision to work overtime to help the hospital actually did the opposite by affecting her health and caused a fatal medical error. I completely agree with your 3 weapons against healthcare harm: leadership, safe practice, and technology. As Advanced Practice Nurses, I strongly believe we must to be accountable, responsible, and approachable in order to be an effective healthcare role model and leader. Our priority should always be patient safety as we assess, diagnose, and implement interventions. APNs should conduct continuous research for self-knowledge, to educate staff members, and to educate the patients.
Large patient loads combined with a stressful work environment affects nurses’ abilities to provide quality healthcare. Patient safety should never be compromised. It is our responsibility to learn from research and improve our current nurse staffing ratios. Nurse staffing is key and affects all other outcomes. Without nurses administering the right treatment at the right time to the right patients, all other healthcare interventions are not effective.