Feature Effects of interruptions to nurses during medication administration Janette Bennett and colleagues explain why interrupting nurses, particularly when they are administering drugs, can affect the quality of the care they provide Summary Medication errors can occur at any stage of the medication process including prescribing, dispensing, preparation, administration and monitoring (Vincent et al 2009). Medication administration is acknowledged as a process in which patient safety can be compromised easily (Department of Health 2003) and it is argued that any distraction or interruption during medication administration can result in errors. This Policy+ reviews the contribution to medication administration errors of interruptions to nurses’ work and considers how such interruptions can be reduced. Keywords Medication errors, interruptions, administration ThE liTEraTurE distinguishes between three types of interruption: interruptions mid task and between tasks (Potter et al 2005), and system failures such as when the access of staff to equipment and supplies is poor (Tucker and Spear 2006). a pilot study by the National Nursing research unit, at King’s College london, has shown that interruptions are contextually dependent on ward layout, patient care, trust or ward protocols and the seniority of the nurses undertaking the tasks involved.
The importance of documentation and the ethical principles that will guide any nurse’s practice will be reviewed. West's Encyclopedia of American Law defines negligence “as the failure to use reasonable care that a reasonably prudent person would exercise in like circumstances.” When health care professional duties fail to meet this standard, negligence is the proven outcome. Medication administration not followed by a nurse as ordered, that result the patient's illness worsening or causes death, negligence may be proven. Nurse’s must know and adhere to the standards of care, maintain competency, state board regulations, and seek out further education, failure to do so may result in a charge of negligence. Gross negligence can be defined as a conscious and voluntary disregard of the need to use reasonable care, which is likely to cause foreseeable grave injury or harm to persons, property, or both (West, 1998).
Research Summary and Ethical Considerations: Complexity in Practice Environments Grand Canyon University: NRS 433V 1/12/2014 Title Needed This article discusses the complexity in nursing practice environments that affect patient outcomes. There are many different aspects of the relationship between nursing care and patient outcomes. Nurses struggle to provide quality care in a high-demand practice environment, all the while dealing with stressors. Through research of the nurse work environment three key stressors that influence the quality of care given by nurses were identified. This new phenomenon has been labeled complexity compression.
In other specialties, the nurse might be taking a substance to escape the depression that accompanies their field of work. The importance of this study was to indicate which specialties were at greatest risk and how to spot a nurse who is using a substance. When a new generation of nurse enter the working field, it is possible to spot when a nurse is in danger of using a substance and assist in the prevention of this habit. In the nursing field, there are many specialties available to work at within the hospital setting. The article “Substance use among Nurses: Differences between Specialties” focused on 13 different specialties.
Leaving a medical facility against a physician’s advice puts a patient at risk for untreated or incompletely treated medical issues, increases the need for subsequent readmission or visits to emergency departments and increases the risk of mortality. DAMA presents a dilemma not only to the attending physician but to the nursing staff caring for the patient. Ethically and legally, patients do have the right to agree to or retract consent for medical treatment; however the nursing management of DAMA is much more complicated and multi-faceted than the patient’s right to consent or dissent to treatment. Problems occur with the understanding of the different types of self-discharge from emergency departments, as well as how best to document such encounters and ultimately, how to improve upon current nursing
Negligence NUR/478 December 1, 2011 Barb Gilbert Introduction Nurses are required to provide adequate care according to nursing Standards of Care and hospital policies. Each nurse should know his allowable scope of practice and provide the best care possible to each patient. Difference between Negligence, Gross Negligence, and Malpractice Negligence “When an individual is negligent and as a result injures someone else, we tend to hold her responsible for those injuries (King, 2009, p. 577). Negligence occurs when someone provides absence of care. When a person is negligent, it is not on purpose or knowingly but when a person fails to pay attention.
3. Define “polypharmacy,” and explain the toxicity issues that can result. (p 1235) • Polypharmacy-the usage of multiple prescriptions by one patient this can result in overdosing , medications that counter act each other or have a negative reaction when taken 4. Discuss the special considerations when responding to calls to nursing and skilled care facilities. (pp 1241–1242) • There are several issues that can have an effect on you and the service that you provide such as the spread or infections from patient to patient or yourself such as MRSA or Clostridium difficile.
ETHICAL AND LEGAL BASIS OF PSYCHIATRIC MENTAL HEALTH NURSING (Jan. 2, 2012) ETHICAL AND LEGAL BASIS OF PSYCHIATRIC MENTAL HEALTH NURSING I. Introduction Nurses are constantly faced with the challenge of making difficult decisions regarding good and evil or life and death. Nursing competency and client care accountability are compromised when the nurse has inadequate knowledge about the laws and regulate the practice of nursing. Knowledge of the legal and ethical concepts presented will enhance the quality of care the nurse provides in his/her legal psychiatric-mental health nursing practice and also protect the nurse within the parameters of legal accountability. The relationship between psychiatry and the law reflects the tension between individual rights and social needs.
Withdrawal of food and fluid from terminally ill patients is a growing ethical issue and concerns patients, families, and nurses as well. The study sampled 160 nurses and they completed a questionnaire that included forced-choice and open-ended questions and the act of withdrawing treatment was supported by nurses only for two specific conditions - if the patients requested it and if it relieved the patient of his or her suffering. However, it is widely agreed that doctors' orders, family's requests or even the patient's advanced age could not and should not ethically justify the act of withholding or withdrawing treatment. The study suggests that apart from the direct clinical issues concerned, the ethical, social and cultural factors seem to play a significant role in any decision of withdrawing or withholding treatment. In this essay we discuss the implications of withdrawing treatment and the role of nurses in this regard.
Preventative Measures Against Injury in Nursing Nursing can be a hazardous and dangerous occupation. A nurse is exposed to various hazards in a health care setting and as a result they have the potential to experience serious injuries and complications. These injuries can be caused by hazards such as sharp objects, hot surfaces, workplace violence, direct contact and manual handling of patients, stress, burnout and faulty electronic equipment, fatigue due to continuous standing work, overexertion, exposure to various dangerous chemicals, in particular medications, cleaning, disinfecting and sterilizing agents and radiation. The most common injuries for nurses includes muscle sprains, back strains and tears (which accounted for approximately 43% of the nursing related injuries between 1995 and 2004), latex allergies, needle stick injuries (NSIs), blood borne infection, radiation and physical abuse injuries resulting from violence. The Bureau of Labour Statistics reports that 800,000 nurses and home health aids were injured between 1995 and 2004 in Australia.