Role of Nurse Leaders in Updating Policies and Procedures.
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Role of Nurse Leaders in Updating Policies and Procedures.
Question 1. What would you do as a nurse leader if your policy or procedure conflicts with the most recent evidence? Describe your response to the nurse.
Policies and procedures guide nurses when administering healthcare. When the policy or procedure conflicts with the recent evidence, it is advisable not to undertake any action under such guidelines. A nurse should implement the current policies and procedures as provided by the professional association.
In this case, I would advise the nurse to address the matter based on the current policies and guidelines. Alternatively, policies contain disclaimers which provide that a nurse can apply their judgement to establish if the policy applies to the particular situation or whether any modification is necessary. Quality healthcare must be provided to patients, and if a policy or procedure is likely to endanger a patient, then the nurse should not conduct the process. Policies and procedures are created to ensure practitioners work under guidelines, but certain situations are not covered by the policies (Alloubani et al., 2019). Therefore a nurse or medical practitioner has the choice of observing quality healthcare rather than the set rules and regulations.
Question 2. Why is it important to update policies and procedures? What are the risks if they are outdated?
Policies and procedures are vital in providing high-quality healthcare to patients. A health institution should update the policies and procedures to ensure all the medical practitioners work by the recognized professional practices. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 provides that policies and procedures in health facilities be updated to meet recent practices. Guidelines and techniques that are correctly written and up to date minimize practice variability that may result in harm and substandard healthcare to patients (Finkelman, 2016). Updated policies and practices reduce the amount of litigation hospitals experience as a result of outdated policies and procedures.
Outdated policies and procedures expose patients to a higher risk of developing health complications’ and lowers their chances of recovery and survival. A patient is subjected to substandard healthcare when a medical practitioner acts against the recommended professional practices that are established in the policies and procedures (McScherry et al., 2012). In addition, a health facility is exposed to lawsuits that arise when a patient sues following the application of deficient procedures and policies. It is upon the management and the leadership to ensure the practices in the hospital align with the current regulations and guidelines.
Question 3. What is the role of a nurse leader in assuring policies or procedures are up to date?
A nurse leader has the responsibility of promoting adherence to policies and procedures by the other nurses. As a leader, he embodies distinctive qualities such as creativity, critical thinking and good decision making that aid his leadership. Promoting the update of policies and procedures requires that a nurse leader establishes whether the relevant professional association has published the policy. Once the publication is confirmed, he must educate and inform the other nurses of the new policy and procedures. When a new policy concerns a medical device, the nurse leader can inform the institution which has to purchase it and ensure the staff are well trained on its operation. A nurse leader assures policies and procedures are up to date by supervising the other nurses and making sure they are implementing the set guidelines. A nurse leader is tasked to inform the health institution on any new and mandatory policies and procedures published by the professional associations.
References
McSherry, R., Pearce, P., Grimwood, K., & McSherry, W. (2012). The pivotal role of nurse managers and educators in enabling excellence in nursing care. Journal of Nursing Management, 20(1), 7–19.
Alloubani, A., Akhu-Zaheya, L., Abdelhafiz, I. M., & Almatari, M. (2019). Leadership styles’ influence on the quality of nursing care. International Journal of Health Care Quality Assurance.
Finkelman, `A. (, 2016). Leadership and Management for Nurses: Core Competencies for Quality Care (4th ed.). Pearson.