It is safe to say that nurses are key to the nation’s health – though that might sound overstated for some. Nurses are an integral part of every community and provide expert care for people from their birth to the end of life. Therefore, it is essential that a nurse perform her key responsibilities in accordance with the nationally approved competencies and guidelines. In times of doubt, these reports are to serve as guides to action – as well as some simple rules based on constant caution and fact-checking.
First of all, care that a nurse provides must be patient-centered and family-oriented. According to QSEN (n.d.), that includes always checking for a patient’s personal and emotional comfort, removing barriers to the presence of families in a hospital room, and recognizing the boundaries of the nurse-patient relationship. I always strive to facilitate communication with a patient in an appropriate way and ensure their families can spend time with them. Additionally, QSEN (n.d.) states that nursing practice must be evidence-based: that is, a nurse is to participate in research activities, increase knowledge on their area of practice, and base care plans on clinical expertise. I tend to do just that: constantly improve in my professional field and perfect my skills both theoretically and practically. Moreover, as per QSEN (n.d.), safety is crucial in care provision: risk-of-harm-reduction strategies, use of technologies supporting safety and quality, and participation in analyzing errors are all to be implemented by nurses in their practice. Safety is of the utmost importance to me, and I try to keep abreast of new developments in this regard and engage in meaningful discussions.
When it comes to the rules of basic circumspection and reasonableness, there are a few every nurse has to abide by no matter what. For example, McQueary (2014) advises that a patient’s ID bracelet and their medication order are always checked. Considering how The Joint Commission (2021) reports that wrong-patient errors occur on all stages of treatment, this suggestion is to be taken seriously. The same goes for medication: McQueary (2014) insists that it is triple checked: when retrieving, preparing, and before administering. The Joint Commission (2021) echoes that: all medications and containers everywhere have to be labeled and kept in place. Finally, as per The Joint Commission (2021), the risk of health care-related infections must be improved. Widespread compliance with the hygiene guidelines will help in reducing the risks associated with that.
References
McQueary, J. (2014). 10 rights of medication administration [Video]. YouTube. Web.
QSEN. (n.d.). QSEN competencies. Web.
The Joint Commission. (2021). National Patient Safety Goals® effective January 2022 for the hospital program. Web.