The first approach would be looking at schedules of RNs who worked during understaffed shifts and documentation of provided care.

PLEASE RESPOND TO THE FOLLOWING POST OF A CLASSMATE IN 100 WORDS, Remember that your posts must be substantive and contribute to the dialogue that is taking place and Response posts must offer at least one new piece of information or insight.

Please also include references!

Classmate’s Response:

1. What is your first approach to showing a link between missed nursing care and staffing?

The first approach would be looking at schedules of RNs who worked during understaffed shifts and documentation of provided care.  

1. What questions could you pose to frontline nurses to understand how their staffing experience related to missed care?

The nurse manager could ask RNs who worked on a particular day when the unit was understaffed what tasks were missed because of lack of time. Also, the nurse manager could personally follow RNs on the days when they are short staffed to identify the gaps in patient care.  

1. Whom will you engage institutionally to understand the issue fully? Why them?

The nurse manager would need to involve the Director of Nursing, chef Nursing Officer, and Charge nurses. Charge nurses work closely with RNs and can determine what kinds of issues RNs faced when the unit was understaffed, and what obstacles they encountered when they were performing their tasks. The Director of Nursing and Nursing Officer deal with budgeting and staffing issues. They can identify what needs to be changed on a large scale to prevent financial losses and low productivity. 

1. Which data elements may be required to build a case for staffing and missed nursing care?

Data elements required to build a case would include employee’s schedule, documentation of provided care, and patients’ surveys. The nurse manager could pull employees’ monthly schedules along with daily documentation of provided care and look at the gaps. On days when the unit was understaffed, the nurse manager could take a closer look at which tasks were completed and which were missed. In addition, the nurse manager could conduct a survey among patients and determine whether the RNs followed the plan of care.  

1. What ideas would you propose to the administration to reverse the financial effects and improve HCHAPS scores?

Briones suggests increasing wage compensation for the nurses (2022). Also, it would be helpful to improve requirements for documentation of provided patient care. Redundant documentation should be eliminated, so that nurses could concentrate on performing their tasks. Nurse leaders can also implement employee retention programs.  

References 

Briones, D. (January 2022). American Health Law association. Staffing shortages: Responses and risks at hospitals and health systems https://www.americanhealthlaw.org/content-library/publications/briefings/d4102f32-1be8-45bb-9cfe-a35cc59763f7/staffing-shortages-responses-and-risks-at-hospitalLinks to an external site.  

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