Nursing Sensitive Indicators

Running Head: Organizational Systems and Quailty Leadership

Organizational Systems and Quality Leadership
RTT- Task 1
Tara McColeman
Student ID:000297596
Student Mentor: Kristine Warner

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Discussion
Nursing Sensitive indicators are guidelines that were implemented during the 1990 's when there was a need to restructure and evaluate nursing staffing and identify linkages between nursing to patient ratios and the patient outcomes. (ANA 1995.) I also believe that this redesign was also in response to the major nursing shortage of the 1990 's here in the United States. The
American Nurses Association (ANA) implemented these guidelines in response.
The American Nurses Association (ANA) describe nursing sensitive indicators
Major deviations occurred during the course of Mr. J 's hospitalization. The patient is a Rabbi, and was given pork, the patient was given narcotics which further altered his mental status, leading him to increased risk of falls, therefore, requiring him to to be restrained, creating an increased risk of pneumonia and pressure ulcer by limiting his ability to change positions in bed, and forcing him to remain sedentary potentially causing fluids to pool in his lungs and adding to pressure on his sacrum.
Upon review of this scenario, the potential nursing sensitive indicators are would be to address all eight listed as the most commonly used indicators, but for this discussion, I will identify three. Patient satisfaction: religious beliefs a blatant disregard for the patients religious practices. The patient was given a regular diet, and had eaten a pork cutlet, his daughter found out by accident.
The patient may not be aware of the incident, but the daughter was certainly aware and called the hospital administrator indicating her dissatisfaction.

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Complications as result of hospitalization: pressure ulcers; such as the reddened area noted by the patient 's daughter on the patients lower spine. The CNA disregards the reddened area,
In order to stay competitive and make a profit. The hospitals are responding by targeting the largest group of employees in the hospital- The RN. As a result, they 're using cheaper licensed and non-licensed personnel: CNA,
HA, and LVN 's creating higher patient to RN ratio, thereby increasing the patient acuity (Barter et al., 1994)
A 1997 ANA pilot study, described below, is an interesting study, describing the linkage between the use of RN 's and non RN 's.
The ANA found that shorter lengths of stay are strongly related to higher RN staffing. The patient 's acuity was evaluated and adjusted on a daily basis, and the patient morbidity indicators for preventable conditions such as: pressure ulcers, pneumonia, postoperative infections, and urinary tract infections-are inversely related to RN skill mix. Indicating that the more RNs ' taking care of the patients, the fewer preventable conditions those patients experienced.
Another study conducted in 1998, by Blegen, et al., found that a higher proportion of RNs was directly related to lower incidences of negative patient outcomes, such as medication errors, pressure ulcers, and complaints by patients and