Rtt Task1
Organizational Systems and Quality Leadership Task 1
Western Governors University
Nursing-Sensitive Indicators
Nursing sensitive indicators reflect the structure, process and outcomes of nursing care. The structure of nursing care is indicated by the supply of nursing staff, the skill level of the nursing staff, and the education/certification of nursing staff. Process indicators measure aspects of nursing care such as assessment, intervention, and RN job satisfaction. Patient outcomes that are determined to be nursing sensitive are those that improve if there is a greater quantity or quality of nursing care. ("Nursing world," 2013) Having knowledge of these indicators hard-wired and put into practice in daily care of patients, could have assisted the nurses involved in this particular case in many ways. Knowing the risk of pressure ulcer development with the use of restraints could have helped the nurse prevent one in this patient. The bedside care providers, the nurse, as well as, the CNA would have recognized the reddened area as the first stage in pressure ulcer development. They would have been more meticulous with skin assessments and repositioning with the use of restraints in this elderly patient. Also, if the CNA had a better understanding of when to appropriately use restraints and how to manage a restrained patient she wouldn’t have positioned the patient on his back after he returned to bed. Another nursing sensitive indicator is patient and family satisfaction which was not taken into account in this situation. The nurse so easily dismissed the daughter’s concerns about the dietary mix up and blew off her concerns regarding what her father was served. Nursing sensitive quality indicators are an important part of the equation when it comes to establishing evidence-based practice guidelines. But measuring these indicators is not simply good science – it’s an ethical imperative.
Western Governors University
Nursing-Sensitive Indicators
Nursing sensitive indicators reflect the structure, process and outcomes of nursing care. The structure of nursing care is indicated by the supply of nursing staff, the skill level of the nursing staff, and the education/certification of nursing staff. Process indicators measure aspects of nursing care such as assessment, intervention, and RN job satisfaction. Patient outcomes that are determined to be nursing sensitive are those that improve if there is a greater quantity or quality of nursing care. ("Nursing world," 2013) Having knowledge of these indicators hard-wired and put into practice in daily care of patients, could have assisted the nurses involved in this particular case in many ways. Knowing the risk of pressure ulcer development with the use of restraints could have helped the nurse prevent one in this patient. The bedside care providers, the nurse, as well as, the CNA would have recognized the reddened area as the first stage in pressure ulcer development. They would have been more meticulous with skin assessments and repositioning with the use of restraints in this elderly patient. Also, if the CNA had a better understanding of when to appropriately use restraints and how to manage a restrained patient she wouldn’t have positioned the patient on his back after he returned to bed. Another nursing sensitive indicator is patient and family satisfaction which was not taken into account in this situation. The nurse so easily dismissed the daughter’s concerns about the dietary mix up and blew off her concerns regarding what her father was served. Nursing sensitive quality indicators are an important part of the equation when it comes to establishing evidence-based practice guidelines. But measuring these indicators is not simply good science – it’s an ethical imperative.
References: American Sentinel University. (2011). Healthcare Blog. American Sentinel. Retrieved from http://www.americansentinel.edu/blog/2011/11/02/what-are-nursing-sensitive-quality-indicators-anyway/ American Nurses Association. (2013). Nursing world. Retrieved from http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ThePracticeofProfessionalNursing/PatientSafetyQuality/Research-Measurement/The-National-Database/Nursing-Sensitive-Indicators_1