This new phenomenon has been labeled complexity compression. Background of study The association between the nurse staffing levels and the patient outcomes has been extensively studied over the past decade or so. The question being asked by researchers is: does an increased staffing level lead to more positive patient outcomes? This study was conducted by interviewing nurses and not patients. There is a direct link between the amounts of stressors that nurses “juggle” and how the effect of those stressors tend to affect their patient outcomes, either positively or negatively.
Only 17 meet the criteria, and one more was excluded due to a quality appraisal. Therefore 16 studies were accepted for the systematic review. Key Elements Stress in the nursing profession is clearly a problem and contributes to many areas which need improvement in nursing. Galbraith & Brown clearly stated the need for future studies and the lack of studies in this area (2011), as they reviewed many research studies from multiple discipline areas related to stress management and interventions in nurses and students. According to Galbraith and Brown there are several areas of stress in a nurses or students life which may lead to sickness, absence and attrition (2011).
However, because thousands of new drugs have been developed recently, because the health care environment is increasingly complex, and because the patients are older and often sicker, there is increasing risk for medication errors in hospitals. They occur most frequently at the prescribing and administration stages. Medication errors occur in all health care systems; and often result in serious patient harm or deaths are the focus because this is an issue for most hospitals. Serious errors harm patients and expose health professionals to civil liability and sometimes-criminal prosecution (NHS Jan 2004, p.9). The statistics of medication error consistently increases in health care sector.
Not only will nurses feel better, but better patient outcomes occur when units are better staffed. Even though budgets limit the amount of nurses by patient census, money may actually be saved by staffing more qualified nurses. Overview of topic Nurse staffing is a topic of much debate over nurse to patient ratios, nurse satisfaction, and promoting the best patient outcomes. Hospitals are constantly trying to staff their units while staying to their allowed budget. This often means that a greater nurse to patient ratio occurs in order for the unit to see a more immediate financial savings.
Use of Incentive Spirometers Sheila Aranda Spokane Community College November 1, 2012 Evidence Based Nursing Practice The purpose and direction of this paper is to first choose a nursing procedure that is commonly used on the nursing unit where I was assigned for my Capstone experience. There is a brief description of the care unit. The reason why I chose this particular procedure for my paper. Then I describe the process of finding the hospital’s policy on performing this individual nursing procedure. Was the hospital up to current practice standards?
Mariama Koroma 09-22-09 Topic: The Impact Of Shortage Of Nurses Thesis Statement: The need for professional nurses is growing but the number of nurses continues to decline; this paper will take a careful look at the impact of the shortage of nurses in health care delivery. The growing professional shortage presents the most significant problem for the health care system today. An adequate supply of professional nurses is vital in ensuring access to quality in health care now and to the patient in the future. Study has shown that the labor market has undergone significant changes during the last decade. According to the study in the early 1990s(……………………………...) there was national shortage of professional nurses(…….).
High levels of work place stress and professional burnout continually affects nurses and other health care workers globally. This paper will explore this nursing issue by articulating the concepts of stress and professional burnout relative to the nursing profession. The term stress is defined as “a particular relationship between the person and the environment that is appraised by the person as taxing or as exceeding his or her resources and is endangering his or her well-being” (Wlodarczyk, & Lazarewicz, 2011 p.848). This definition focuses on how stress is connected to an individual’s awareness of their resources and environment. The term professional burnout is described as “physical, emotional and mental exhaustion that results from long-term involvement in work situations that are emotionally demanding” (Wlodarczyk, & Lazarewicz, 2011 p.848), highlighting how the work place environment is directly affecting an individual’s health and well-being.
An Institute of Medicine report estimates that medical errors cost the nation 17 billion dollars in preventable medical errors each year (“A Guide,” 2011). In addition, these errors rob the medical community of the trust and confidence of its patients. This paper will explore: why the Joint Commission goals are important, examples of problems that have been experienced, potential hindrances to meeting these goals, and strategies to help maintain adherence to these goals. It goes without saying that it is of paramount importance to the safety and well-being of a patient to be correctly identified and to have medications administered safely. There are hundreds of patients in a hospital; and at any given time there may be several with the same last name.
Other factors include separation from family, anxiety, sense of isolation and stigma. Glynn et al (1997) investigated the effects on the rate of infection of certain known risk factors such as age, underlying disease, and length of hospital and the use of invasive procedures. He found that it was in the use of invasive devices, which increased the infection rate from one HAI per 100 patient’s episodes to 7.2, and goes on to state “this is important for nurses because they manage invasive devices, such as urinary catheters, intravascular cannulae, epidural cannulae, nasogastric tubes, and peg tubes, which often identify the early signs of infection” (McCullach, 1998). The (NMC 2002) states “nurses have a duty to safeguard the wellbeing of patients and have a due regard for the environment of care” Code of professional conduct. Nurses must be sure that they do not contribute to infection risks and must take care to prevent infection whenever possible.
They provide services designed to prevent illness, promote health problems, and achieve optimal recovery from adaptation to health problems. The population has been increasing, and possibly means medical attention and care will increase as well. In the medical field much more nurses are needed and more job opportunities are opening. Nursing has dominated in areas in the workforce which involves nursing shortage, many opportunities to choose from, it is a recession-proof career, and the pay along with the benefits is great. One of the advantages of becoming a registered nurse is based on the shortage.