Category: Nursing

Experimental and Nonexperimental Research Design

Research in nursing can be experimental and nonexperimental, depending on the researchers goal. The former involves manipulation with a variable to determine how it affects the outcome (Nieswiadomy & Bailey, 2018). An example would be researching how a nurses intervention impacts a mothers breastfeeding efficacy (Piro & Ahmed, 2020). It is a fully experimental study as there are the control and the experimental groups. Nonexperimental research design lacks manipulation and is descriptive, aiming to obtain information without invasion (Nieswiadomy & Bailey, 2018). For example, a study focusing on discovering how nurses job satisfaction relates to their desire to develop professionally is conducted through surveying the participants (Hariyati & Safril, 2018). Ideally, experimental studies should have control to avoid undesirable influences on variables, but it can be difficult to achieve with human beings; meanwhile, nonexperimental studies have minimal or absent control.

The Sampling Theory

Sampling is an essential part of any research, and a correct approach determines the studys success. It includes selecting people, either individuals or groups, with a certain characteristic for studying, and the sample ideally represents the target population. Usually, inclusion and exclusion criteria are applied to make the selection more accurate. Sampling can be random or selective, and while the latter affects representativeness, it is necessary for studying relationships between specific demographics and diseases or how a method impacts a groups well-being (Grove & Gray, 2019). For instance, discovering the impact of Tele-nursing on patient adherence to post-operative treatment after a certain surgery requires a sample of patients who underwent it (Bikmoradi, Masmouei, Ghomeisi, & Roshanaei, 2016). Meanwhile, the sampling for the previously mentioned studies can be more randomized, as nurses and pregnant women are broader population groups. A studys success is determined by its generalizability when its findings can be applied to the entire target population; for example, Tele-nursing is supposed to help all patients after that surgery (Grove & Gray, 2019). Limitations regarding sampling and generalizability exist, and researchers tend to highlight them so as not to mislead nurses who would want to apply the results to their work.

References

Bikmoradi, A., Masmouei, B., Ghomeisi, M., & Roshanaei, G. (2016). Impact of Tele-nursing on adherence to treatment plan in discharged patients after coronary artery bypass graft surgery: A quasi-experimental study in Iran. International Journal of Medical Informatics, 86, 4348. Web.

Grove, S. K., & Gray, J. R. (2018). Understanding nursing research: Building an evidence-based practice (7th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier.

Hariyati, R. T. S., & Safril, S. (2018). The relationship between nurses job satisfaction and continuing professional development. Enfermería Clínica, 28, 144148. Web.

Nieswiadomy, R. M., & Bailey, C. (2018). Foundations of nursing research (7th ed.). New York City, NY: Pearson.

Piro, S. S., & Ahmed, H. M. (2020). Impacts of antenatal nursing interventions on mothers breastfeeding self-efficacy: An experimental study. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 20(1), 19-31. Web.

Nursing Theory Utilized

As it has been already mentioned in the preceding parts of the proposal, the great role in the prevention of sepsis lies upon nurses. They should be able to notice the early signs and symptoms of this condition and immediately take appropriate measures. Thus, to provide patients with the required help, nurses should constantly accumulate experience and deepen knowledge. This idea corresponds with the nursing theory proposed by Patricia Benner (1982). Benners (1982) concept From Novice to Expert emphasizes the importance of constant training and experience. According to Benner (1982), experience teaches the proficient nurse what typical events to expect in a given situation and how to modify plans in response to these events (p. 405). This way, it becomes apparent that the more experienced nurses are, the more capable they are to prevent the development of sepsis.

Proposed Implementation Plan with Outcome Measures

The number of deaths caused by sepsis could be reduced through the improvement of the skills and knowledge of nurses. Consequently, it is suggested to regularly make nurses participate in lectures and workshops dedicated to sepsis detection and prevention. Other measures that should be implemented include the increase of hospital funding so that hospitals could hire more qualified personnel or install better equipment. As a result, it is expected that the previously outlined measures would lead to the reduction of the number of deaths caused by sepsis. Still, it should be noted that a quick result should not be expected. The proposed actions will bring statistically significant results at least after three months from the beginning of implementation.

Application of the Evidence-Based Practice

The analysis of the existing literature dedicated to sepsis treatment and prevention illustrated that the major reason for the development of sepsis lies in the non-compliance with basic hygiene rules such as washing and disinfection of hands. From this, it was inferred that some of the nurses did not inform patients of these rules or even did not obey them by themselves. This fact was taken into consideration while creating the intervention plan. During the lectures and workshops, nurses will be told about the importance of strict compliance with basic hygiene rules. Nurses will also be explained how to make their patients strictly observe hygiene to minimize the chances for sepsis appearance after an operation, for example.

Plan for Evaluating the Proposed Nursing Intervention

The effectiveness of the proposed nursing intervention is easy to track. The intervention will be regarded as successful if the number of patients whose death was caused by sepsis reduces. More precisely, according to the statistics provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018), one in three patients dies because of sepsis. The proposed plan of action aims to reduce the frequency of deaths caused by sepsis at least two times.

Potential Barriers to Plan Implementation

Undoubtedly, several barriers could hinder the implementation of the plan. The first problem lies in the hospital administrations unwillingness to change the status quo and encourage nurses to attend lectures and seminars. To solve this problem, it is necessary to explain to the managerial personnel of a hospital that the reduction of the frequency of fatal outcomes caused by sepsis will have a positive impact on a hospitals image. This, in turn, will attract more clients. The problem with the lack of funding is much more challenging to handle. Still, if a hospital does not get enough money from the local or federal government, it could attract investors or launch a crowdfunding campaign.

References

Benner, P. (1982). From novice to expert. American Journal of nursing, 82(3), 402-407.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2018). Clinical Information. Web.

The dynamic increase of social media platforms and their impact on human life pose critical concerns and challenges for nursing students and nurse professionals. With the digital takeover of the modern lifestyle, nurses might become less mindful of the ethical and cautious use of their social media accounts. However, social media can be a highly effective tool for nurses and patients to maintain contact with healthcare providers and nurse education purposes (Daly and Jackson, 2020). Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to strike the right balance between the professional side of the nursing occupation and the appropriate use of social media networks.

Analysis of my Social Media

Despite being surrounded by the immense number of online platforms, I am still not actively engaged in social media. The main reason is that I try to dedicate most of my time to education, as the nursing field and my future practice require profound knowledge and the right focus of the student. Instagram and Facebook are the most common platforms that I use daily to connect with my peers and family. There are some posts and conversations that might be considered inappropriate based on the professional standards of nursing. More specifically, I have never posted the photos of residents on my social media accounts; however, I have shared the photo of one patient that I got close with during my nursing practice. We took this photo together as my patient was leaving the hospital after a successful recovery. The main problem is that I have shared this photo and the patients name privately with my friend without the patients consent, which might violate state and federal laws that protect patient privacy and confidentiality.

Nurses Responsibility on Social Media

Nurses are obliged to follow a standard of conduct consistent with the standards regulating the nursing profession both at work and in their personal lives. According to the nursing code of ethics, four main pillars guide nurses in their professional and personal lives. They include autonomy, beneficence, justice, and non-maleficence (Daly and Jackson, 2020, p. 84). As such, nurses adherence to the critical aspects of ethics and conduct define the consequences of the professional and personal approaches to treating patients. The laws of a jurisdiction identify the following set of inappropriate disclosures on social media platforms that nurses are not allowed to do:

• unprofessional and unethical behavior,
• moral turpitude,
• mismanagement of patient records,
• disclosing a privileged communication,
• confidentiality breach (NCSBN, 2018).

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) regulates the use and distribution of patients privacy and confidentiality through federal law. Nurses deliberately violate such regulations when they are engaged in the theft of Protected Health Information (PHI) for personal use or with intent to cause harm. When such misconduct of the healthcare provider on social media is particularly outrageous, it infringes the state and federal regulations that protect the patient from abuse or exploitation.

Christian Values

The Christian considerations in nursing are pivotal to lead patient care with love and respect towards one another, reflecting human value and dignity. Based on my social media accounts, some areas reflect such religious beliefs that I aim to incorporate in my medical practice consistently. I try to care for those in need through my educational posts and online support for any person that seeks help online. Additionally, I provide them with emotional support and empathy to alleviate their pain and frustration. As a result, I am dedicated to every patient online and sacrifice my free time or my other needs to be there for them because to be a nurse, you must learn to sacrifice (Steele and Monroe, 2020). However, I believe I need to improve the areas of my social media that involve sharing visual content and any personal information of the patient. Also, my personal photos must align with the established ethical and patient-centric image of the nurse and avoid any inappropriate content. As a nurse, I understand that I am entirely responsible for my actions at the workplace as they directly impact the safety and privacy of patients.

References

Daly, J., & Jackson, D. (2020). Contexts of nursing: An introduction. Elsevier Health Sciences.

NCSBN (2018). A nurses guide to the use of social media. National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. 

Steele, R. B., & Monroe, H. A. (2020). Christian ethics and nursing practice. Wipf and Stock Publishers.

As the Baby Boomer generation starts to age and exit the workforce, the job market is likely to experience deficits in skilled workers. However, the nursing field seems to face an additional challenge as the need for such professionals continues to grow. The Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2019-2029 reports that the job growth for the occupation of Registered Nursing will remain a constant all the way through the next decade (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2017). Simultaneously, expert forecasts suggest there is going to be a shortage of registered nurses in the U.S. between 2016 and 2030 (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2017).

Rates of enrollment in nursing schools are not increasing in direct proportion to the high demand of professionals in this occupation. In turn, this is caused by scarce teaching staff available at nursing institutions. Furthermore, although the aging population continues to grow, which creates a high demand for nursing practitioners, thousands of nurses retire (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2017). As for the effects of this issue, the shortage results in less safe and accessible care due to high retirement and turnover rates. Additionally, understaffing leads to the development of a highly stressful work environment, leaving nurses unsatisfied and more likely to quit.

In regards to the solutions, one could argue that it is important to make it easier for recent college graduates to get hired as nurses or leverage the newest data-driven technology to aid the hiring process. However, these solutions may be effective only in short term. In order to initiate a significant change, it is crucial to implement a solution, which will work in the long run. Thus, nursing organizations and medical centers should focus on minimizing stress for nurses and the possibility of burnout. Some strategies to implement this solution include fostering a healthy work environment, prioritizing workers needs, investing in employee assistance programs, as well as developing internal career paths.

Reference

American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2017). Fact sheet: Nursing shortage. AACN Nursing. Web.

Implementing Evidence-Based Care

Evidence-based practices (EBP) refer to the strategies that have been shown by clinical research to improve patient outcomes. They are medical or clinical interventions proven to have a positive effect on the health of patients. EBP is a patient-centered approach that can significantly improve nursing care delivery. It improves the health status of patients, increases professional knowledge, and updates best practices for delivery of care. Despite the accruable benefits, many nurses still struggle to implement evidence-based care.

The first major barrier to the implementation of EBP by nurses is that some of them do not have knowledge about these practices. Some professionals are not conversant with nursing practices that constitute EBP. The reason is that evidence-based care is constantly changing depending on new findings (Reddy, 2019). It evolves as clinical researchers conduct studies on how to improve patient care. Many nurses find it difficult to implement the best practices because they are not updated on them. Further, other nurses do not know how to integrate evidence from studies with their expertise. This means that although they have the knowledge, they do not know how to apply it. This can be a significant barrier that prevents implementation.

I have also witnessed nurses who are hesitant to implement evidence-based practices because of patients expectations. Often, patients come to the hospital with preconceived notions about the type of care they should receive. In the internet age, people read a lot of medical information online. While some of this information might be useful, other prevents nurses from implementing EBP (Reddy, 2019). For instance, when a patient insists on receiving care in a certain way, nurses find it difficult to go against their wishes. In fact, this may prevent healthcare providers from taking care of patients to the best of their capacity.

Another barrier I have witnessed to the implementation of EBP is overload of work. Sometimes, nurses have too many responsibilities to learn about or implement the best practices. In some facilities, they do the work of several healthcare providers because the roles of professionals within this industry are becoming increasingly blurred. In other hospitals, there is a shortage of nurses due to understaffing. Consequently, these nurses do not have time to conduct research on the best practices or familiarize themselves with the evidence-based practices.

Despite the challenges identified, there are the strategies that can remove these barriers. First, nurses should develop an interest in evidence-based practices. EBP has numerous advantages not just to patients but to healthcare providers. Nurses can improve their skills by conducting research on how best to care for patients. To help nurses overcome knowledge and skills barrier, the nursing curriculum should have research methods as a topic.

One of the best ways to increase the use of evidence-based practice among nursing professionals is to provide them with an enabling environment. Nurses should receive adequate support in their workplaces to implement the best practices (Reddy, 2019). For instance, senior and more experienced staff could teach less experienced nurses how to integrate best practices with their clinical expertise. Additionally, hospital management should adequately staff the facility to prevent an overload of work among nurses. They must be given enough time to stay updated on new research studies. Additionally, when nurses undertake the work of several healthcare providers, it prevents them from specializing in their field. An enabling environment entails providing nurses with the opportunity to grow their career as well as improve their caregiving skills.

Reference

Reddy, K. M. (2019). Challenges of implementing evidence based practice. JNPE, 5(1), 22-24. Web.

Introduction

The future of nursing has attracted several debates, and it is noted that nurses have broader opportunities, such as meeting healthcare needs for organizations and patients. This paper delves into the options available for an associate nursing degree qualification and professional certification and advanced degree goals to become a more qualified nurse. It will also focus on the impact of continuing nursing education on caregivers and the need to have mandatory training for the nurses.

Options in the Job Market

My current level of education is that of an associate degree in nursing. The options I have in the job market are working as a registered nurse in a hospital, where I can be employed in the emergency room (ER), general ward, or the maternity ward (Schrum, 2015). I will be tasked with taking vital signs, administering medication, and managing care. There is an average salary scale of about $69,000 per year.

I can also get employed as an outpatient care nurse, where I would be working in an outpatient department offering routine care to patients, following medical procedures, and being present during surgery. In addition, I will also work as a personal care nurse responsible for visiting patients at their homes and offering care regularly. This job is more lucrative as it pays $5,000 more than the salary paid to the registered nurse.

Finally, I also have the option of becoming a Physicians office nurse. Here I would be tasked with providing routine care to patients, checking for vital signs, administering shots, medication, and vaccines, as well as initial exams, and consultation with patients (Schrum, 2015). Another option to consider would be to become a nursing care facility nurse, where I will undertake to give care to the elderly, check vital signs, administer medication, and accomplish the doctors tasks.

Professional Certification and Advanced Degree Goals

Professional certification of nurses gives them an opportunity to advance their knowledge and achieve career goals. The Institute of Medicine report suggests that due to the complexity and nature in which the system keeps changing, nurses should attain higher education height (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2016). Consequently, they will meet the goals of nursing, such as prioritizing patients needs. Regular training of nurses is essential in achieving quality healthcare service and patients safety in hospitals.

Higher education is a consideration when it comes to recruiting the qualified staff in the job market. Employers tend to prefer those with baccalaureate and masters degrees. For this reason, I would prefer to attain a baccalaureate and masters degree within four years. Based on the reports findings, I believe that after my successful completion of a masters degree, I will be employable for most of the positions within the nursing field.

Nursing is a lifelong learning process due to the ever-changing nature of practice. Therefore, continuous education offers the nurses the opportunity to learn and advance their own techniques in safe patient care. Looking at the trends in the healthcare industry, baccalaureate and masters degree holders are much needed in the job market. To this end, progressive training is necessary; professional and personal values and approaches are often mirrored in a peoples behavior and intentions for the organization, which positively contributes to service devilry as well as to the performance of the hospital.

Continuing Nursing Education and Other Attributes

Continuing nursing education involves learning skills to attain to enhance personal qualification, attitude change, and knowledge. Subsequently, nurses role and care plan level in the society will improve. In other words, poorly planned education among nurses affects patient care.

Continuous learning and constant professional development can be achieved through holding training camps, conferences, workshops, and seminars that provide an opportunity for continual proficient development and empowerment (Clark et al., 2015). Some innovations and changes occur in every sector, and therefore, the healthcare industry needs to have personnel that regularly receive continuous education. In addition, new knowledge on how to deal with cultural diversity improves nurses attitudes, knowledge, and the ANA scope and standards for practice and Code of Ethics. Thus, it is essential for all nurses to take part in continuing nursing education.

Mandatory Continuing Nursing Education

The ongoing training for nurses has a positive correlation to their competency. Equally, continuing competence subjects nurses to the most recent and skill-oriented information that would effectively improve their ability to work within a hospital setting. In addition, the new knowledge acquired through training promotes patient safety and quality healthcare (Mehdi et al., 2019). It can therefore be noted that continuing nursing education is important as it improves the nurses competence.

Finally, attaining a high level of education should be mandatory since the patients safety is critical. Employers prefer highly learned nurses; therefore, if it is compulsory, every nurse will have to upgrade, thereby making them competitive in the market. In addition, continuous learning ensures that nurses are well aware of the professions dynamic changes. This will help them become competent in their roles at a facility. Importantly, the objective of health institutions is to offer quality healthcare services.

Conclusion

In conclusion, continuing nursing education plays a significant role in keeping the nurses updated with the latest advancement in care and treatment. Furthermore, it allows them to explore other nursing areas, such as pain management, wound care, geriatrics, and home health, among others. Therefore, it is crucial for nurses to regularly take on courses that will advance their knowledge, make them stay up to date, enhance patient outcomes, and experience professional growth.

References

Clark, M., Julmisse, M., Marcelin, N., Merry, L., Tuck, J., & Gagnon, A. J. (2015). Strengthening healthcare delivery in Haiti through nursing continuing education. International Nursing Review, 62(1), 54-63. 

Mehdi, Z., Nasser, R., Theobald, H., & Schoemann, K. (2019). Health workers educational training and staffing concerning medication errors, fall injuries, and complaints among older adults. Global Journal of Health Science, 11(3). 

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2016). Assessing progress on the Institute of Medicine report The Future of Nursing. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. Web.

Schrum, R. A. (2015). Nursing student retention in an associate degree nursing program utilizing a retention specialist. Teaching and Learning in Nursing, 10(2), 80-87. 

The present-day interpersonal preconceptions are to some extent come as a result of some psychological mechanisms that came up for the purposes of giving individuals protection from the danger of infectious disease. This system of behavioral immunity sufficiently promotes the avoidance of disease but also leads to an overgeneralized discrimination toward individuals who are not genuine disease carriers.

This paper is going to confirm the validity of the findings of some three studies that were conducted by Huang, Sedlovskaya, Ackerman and Bargh in the year 2011, which tested whether the experiences with two present forms of protection from disease; that is hand washing and immunization attenuate the association between concerns regarding infection and intolerance against foreigners or out-groups.

The research carried out by various experts as it can be seen in the article show non-clear or apparent implications of the comprehension of the behavioral immune system. They carried out their first research when the epidemic of HIV became rampant. To prime concerns over disease, their subjects were advised to read the news excerpts so as to gain or acquire information regarding the probable risks of the disease.

The participants were then required to fill out a model of the present scale of racism, which had items like immigrants have over the last few years received more economically than they are supposed to. The participants were then asked by the researchers whether they had been vaccinated against some of the diseases to prevent HIV from contacting the body.

The first study showed that when the immunized participants were threatened with infection, they showed less prejudice against strangers than those who had not been vaccinated. In the second study, they established that immunization messages framing in terms of vaccination did away with the association between prejudice and chronic germ avoidance.

In the third study, they did a direct manipulation of the individuals infection by having some of them wash their hands and established that this intervention had a substantial influence on the perceptions of the participants of other strangers. The study suggests that public health measures can be beneficial to the community in areas afar the immediate domains that are health-related by informing new, latest prejudice remedies.

The outcomes of the study showed that the subjects were immunized against prejudice by the vaccination, whereby those who had been infected by the flu demonstrated less discriminatory attitudes as compared to those that had not. This outcome was not a result of the pre-available difference in prejudice between those that get immunizations and those that do not, since the difference just came out in those who had had the prime illness concern, out of a control condition.

According to evolutionary psychologists, prejudice is entrenched in survival; our forefathers were forced to keep off the strangers who were suspected of carrying infections. When individuals feel susceptible to disease, they show more prejudice toward the stigmatized groups. However, there may be a modern means of breaking that link. If concerns about infections could be alleviated, it could also be possible that the prejudices caused by them are alleviated. The sense of safety derived via interventions like hand washing and immunization can lessen prejudice against strangers.

For instance, how would one feel if they are informed about the rising number of immigrants from Ethiopia? Would their feelings be different had they lately heard of the flu shot? What if they had washed their hands just before the question was asked. It is very expensive to wait until ones body is really attacked by viruses or bacteria, and the body at times is overcome by the attackers. Disease for long has been a threat to the survival of human beings; like in the instance of the native North Americans decimation by the European germs (Austen, 2006).

Instead of waiting to be attacked by an infection or illness, it is much more important to avert infection by keeping off from the out-group members who are coughing, sneezing, or even showing some other symptoms of sickness (Amos, 2003). Considering that individuals from far-flung or distant foreign locations may also be having foreign infections to which immunity was not developed by the great grandfathers, individuals who are worried about infections may be expected to step up their avoidance of strangers.

Huang and his colleagues have found this to be true, for instance, in a multi-racial or cultural community on the lately flattened earth, we find that this kind of behavioral immune reaction has the cost of increased or enhanced dislike of foreigners. For instance, Canadians who are worried about infections have much opposition to immigrations from foreign regions like Sri Lanka and Ethiopia.

Nevertheless, instead of one just throwing up their hands and making an assertion that that is the nature of human beings, social psychologists who are evolutionarily oriented claim that the comprehension of the mechanisms of discrimination can substantially help in the designing of better interventions or remedies. Among the individuals who are continually concerned about infections, the protection frame substantially boosts their positive attitude towards foreigners.

According to the researchers, individuals who are very much concerned about infections are more negative toward the foreigners. However, they believe that it is very possible for the negative attitudes to be eradicated through a very simple means remedy; that is asking the individuals to use an antiseptic wipe in the cleaning off of their hands.

The researchers believe that information regarding the relationships between infection or illness and the intergroup attitudes can actually be influenced to counteract discrimination or intolerance. Hand-washing together with vaccination are already recognized and acknowledged by the officials of public health as one of the best ways of decreasing the spread of infections.

Nonetheless, it is true that those initiatives can substantially have a double advantage in an open community, by the reduction in the microbial negative effects of dislike of foreigners or xenophobia (Allport, 2006). This research is exceptional in bringing together social cognitive psychology, evolutionary psychology together with the public health, and holds the hope for the reduction of social and physical problems at once.

Therefore, it is beyond reasonable doubt that public health interventions or remedies such as the washing of hands and vaccinations or immunization could be contemporary intervention for an antique affliction. When these public health programs are enhanced, the issue of biases or prejudice against the individuals who are perceived and foreigners and possible having foreign infections will be a gone case, as people will not be afraid to associate with them. Actually, race, gender, ethnicity and HIV stigmatization in women is mainly linked to culture and how people perceive it.

Culture has different impacts on the life of a people depending on how it controls their activities. There are some basic elements of culture that are shared by all people. Every culture controls its people differently in relation to matters pertaining to marriage and ways of obtaining food and shelter. It developed during the pre-historic times as they gave guidance to our fore fathers.

Culture is always constant and does not undergo any development or improvement no matter the circumstances that arise. This is so because it gives a clear reflection to the characters of our fore fathers. Culture is also the origin of the traits people from one community share. There are various negative impacts of culture that at times cause great harm to members of that particular community. These impacts are directly linked to the issue of marriage and family relationships. Kinship is another problem that affects members governed by certain traditions

References

Allport, G. (2006). The Nature of Prejudice. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley.

Amos, J. (2003). Lonely, Feelings. Raintree Steck Vaughn.

Austen, J. (2006). Pride and Prejudice. Norton Critical Edition. Gray, Donald, ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.

Huang, J.Y., Sedlovskaya, A., Ackerman, J.M., & Bargh, J.A. (2011). Immunizing against prejudice: Effects of disease protection on attitudes toward out-groups. Psychological Science.Published online Nov. 4.

Patient safety and healthcare quality are deeply linked and central in improving the well-being of patients. According to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) (2020), healthcare quality encompasses effective, timely, safe, patient-centered, efficient, and equitable care. Patient safety is considered a priority and an essential aspect of healthcare quality. It is achieved when healthcare systems strive to avoid mistakes, learn from arising mistakes, and create a positive safety culture that involves patients, organizations, and health care professionals. The course has had a positive impact on the students knowledge of patient safety and healthcare quality.

Through this course, students learned that patient safety, and healthcare quality is a shared responsibility. Everyone, including the government, patients, researchers, individual nurses, and administrators, has a role to play to ensure quality healthcare services are offered safely (ODPHP, 2020). Scholars were reminded that patients have the right to be heard and receive clear and proper education about ailments and treatments. They are no longer passive recipients as it was in the past (Oldland et al., 2020). Besides, nurses have a critical role to play in ensuring the delivery of safe and efficient health care. Since they are in the first line of care, they are required to apply their critical thinking skills when offering their services.

As a result, there has been an improved delivery of patient care through organized and systematic techniques, which aim at improving healthcare quality and safety. Since the healthcare quality is patient-centered, health officials now have to offer responsive, value-based, and respectful care to all patients (Oldland et al., 2020). Additionally, nurses and doctors have become proactive in improving their services, foreseeing, and finding solutions to expected issues. Therefore, the course reinforced the need for all nurses to embrace healthcare quality and patient safety in their daily activities.

References

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2020). About health care quality | health. Web.

Oldland, E., Botti, M., Hutchinson, A., & Redley, B. (2020). A framework of nurses responsibilities for quality healthcare  Exploration of content validity. Collegian, 27(2), 150-163. Web.

Protection of Human Participants

Like any other study, Study of nurses knowledge about palliative care: A quantitative cross-sectional survey by Prem et al. had several risks to face. First, some of the participants could have chosen the answers that would make them look good. Second, some of the questions could have been misinterpreted by the participants. Though the researchers never mention any of these threats, the latter are quite evident. As far as the institutional review board, no information was provided by the researchers.

As the researchers explain, the members of a multispecialty tertiary care hospital were the key research participants. The authors also indicate that only the nurses attending or having attended a continuing professional development program were allowed to partake in the research (Prem et al., 2012). In order to make sure that each of the team members participates voluntarily, each of them signed an informed consent prior to be given a questionnaire. The given step can be viewed as adequate and, therefore, guarantees that the research results should be objective and that the researchers complied with the rights of the research participants (Burns & Grove, 2011).

Data Collection

Prem et al. define the key professional and individual variables for the research. However, as far as the actual independent and dependent variables or the research are concerned, the authors of the study do not specify the aforementioned elements. This does seem a major disadvantage of the study; without clear markers on what the paper is going to study, and what elements are going to be used as the tools for observing the changes in the subject matter, the reader may lose the track of the key argument.

One can assume, though, that the tools and tests, which were utilized in order to check the skills of the staff, were the independent variables, whereas the quality of the services provided by the nurses could be viewed as the dependent variables. As it has been stressed, the data was collected with the help of several tests; particularly, Karl-Pearsons co-efficient (Sharma, 2005) was calculated in order to assess the quality of the staffs services. The coefficient, in its turn, was defined by using the SPSS version 16.0 for Windows (Prem et al., 2012). Questionnaires were utilized as the main method of data collection, because of the small amount of participants (Prem et al., 2012). Unfortunately, the researchers do not provide any information regarding the time that the project took. The sequence of data collection was quite simple; a questionnaire was handed to a participant, the latter filled in the blank fields, asking questions when certain issues were unclear; afterwards, the questionnaire was given to the research members for an analysis.

Data Management and Analysis

According to the researches, a vast and all-embracing comparison across individual and professional variables for both dimensions (Prem et al., 2012, p. 124) was carried out with the help of the ANOVA. The correlations, in their turn, were calculated with Karl-Pearsons co-efficient; as it has been explained above, the calculations were made in the SPSS version 16.0 for Windows. The authors do not provide any comments concerning the rigor maintenance; it is assumed that the research process was quite monotonous and that no major emotional shifts in the process could be observed. The fact that the authors never speak about the research bias that may have occurred in the course of the study is quite suspicious; the absence of any comments on the topic makes one think that either the research was conducted in a hasty and careless manner, or that the authors of the study attempted at disclosing certain differences in their opinions regarding the issue. However, the fact that no severe disagreements emerged in the course of the study may also signify that the research results were crystal clear and that the data observed and noted down in the process of the research could not possibly have any double meaning.

Findings / Interpretation of Findings

By far one of the most intriguing sections of the research, the findings showed that the nurses in the specified healthcare facility had little to no knowledge on palliative care; more to the point, according to the researchers conclusions, the nurses were much better at psychiatric issues than the specifics of palliative care. The findings seem to be quite valid; after all, the authors designed a specific measurement instrument and applied it in different settings with different results. As Prem et al. explain, The study findings have important curricular implications for nurses and practical implications in palliative care (Prem et al., 2012, p. 126). The authors of the study did not mention any major limitations, either. The authors represented their findings in a very orderly and consistent manner, with graphic evidence to prove their point, including diagrams and tables. The study implications show that staff training must be provided by healthcare services; in addition, the results have shown that the standards for hiring palliative care specialists are disturbingly low. The further studies, therefore, will focus on the means to improve the palliative nursing standards and promote skills training among palliative care specialists.

Reference List

Burns, N., & Grove, S. (2011). Understanding nursing research. 5^th ed. Maryland Heights, MO: Elsevier/Saunders.

Prem, V., Karvannan, H., Kumar, S. P., Karthikbabu, S., Syed, N., Sisodia, N. & Jaykumar, S. (2012). Study of nurses knowledge about palliative care: A quantitative cross-sectional survey. Indian Journal of Palliative Care, 18(2), 122-127. Web.

Sharma, A. K. (2005). Text book of correlations and regression. New Delhi, IN: Discovery publishing House.

Nursing delivery models

According to Sullivan and Garland (2010) nursing care delivery models include the primary nursing, functional nursing, total patient care, and team nursing models. The primary nursing model provides complete health care services for patients in groups in a hospital under the guidance of a licensed practical nurse (LPN), a registered nurse (RN), and and/or nursing assistant (NA). Each model is characterised by different decision making strategies that provide clear outcomes for patient care. A manager or nurse in charge takes charge in each single shift and uses hierarchical communication in decision making in the functional nursing model. On the other hand, nurses apply the total patient care model by use of direct communication and patient based nursing assignments techniques where the role of the managers is to provide the necessary resources for better decision making. On the to the hand, the team nursing model is where a nurse uses hierarchical communication for decision making using hierarchical communication to assign nurses their duties based on leaders expertise in nursing.

A critical review of the primary nursing delivery models show that it is implemented by nursing assistants, licensed practical nurses, or any team of nurses that are present in a health care facility. The model follows the responsibility, teamwork, and accountability, acceptance, and responsibility models in decision making structures to provide day-to-day continuity of patient care services.

Patient centered care leadership style

Marquis and Huston (2009) notes that different leadership styles are used to provide leadership for the patients with the patient centered care leadership style adopted in many health care service delivery institutions. Typically, the concept is based on top leadership commitment and engagement in planning, directing, and controlling nursing activities in the provision of health care services to the patients. The leadership style focuses on the use of shared knowledge and education, collaboration and team management, and free access to information strategies.

Studies by Marquis and Huston (2009) show that the patient centered care leadership style is characterised by systematic measurement of feedback from the patients and caregivers to monitor interventions strategies and change management needs. The patients family gets involved in decision making and constant communication is assured in the process. The leadership provided by the CEO and board of directors is characterised by a strategic vision to all caregivers, use of supportive technology that plays a critical role in supporting service delivery.

Quantum leadership management concept

One of the successful leadership styles in nursing is based on the quantum leadership management concept. The leadership concept is based on the principles of the local provision of health care services, identification of errors that are essential for good leadership using the simple system approach that consists of a complex system of caregivers, and value addition that is important for the provision of health care services at each stage of the nursing delivery model. Here, each element in the health care system works by making intersections and interactions with all participants in the health care giving model (Sullivan & Garland, 2010). Studies show that the principles create constant tension between equilibrium and disequilibrium actions when different components of the health care system are made to work together in a leadership model.

In conclusion, different nursing delivery and leadership models enable nurses to offer different leadership and services delivery solutions for effective decision making processes for each nursing model and environment.

References

Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2009). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application. London: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Sullivan, E. J., & Garland, G. (2010). Practical leadership and management in nursing. London: Pearson Education.