Professional Roles and Values

Delegation

In the professional lifetime of a nurse, there might be a day when she will be on top of her game, her shift will go smoothly, her meds will all be given on time, her patients will wait less than two minutes, no more than three after ringing the call bell, she will perform all wound care timely, and turn and position each patient with a low Braden score every two hours without fail. She will take a full lunch break and her two fifteen minutes break. She will be able to answer all her patients and their family's questions and all her MD orders will be picked up accurately and noted, and she will be ready to give report right at change of shift.

For all the other days that do not go so smoothly there is one of many useful tools that all nurses will and have to use to be able to deliver safe and timely care, and that is delegation. Delegation defined; a nursing intervention from the Nursing Interventions Classification (NIC) defined as transfer of responsibilities for the performance of patient care, while retaining accountability for the outcome. (Mosby, 2008) Within the many roles a nurse can hold delegation will be a skill.

Whether a charge nurse to a busy med/surg floor or emergency room, a staff RN with a heavy patient load and PCA/CNAs working on the floor, a nursing home nurse with multiple patients that have wounds and must be turned and position, or a nursing supervisor at a clinic with new staff member that may need guidance and direction in learning her or his responsibilities in delegation and recognizing when to delegate. Nurses must be able to identify the needs of those she is caring for, those she may be in charge of and identify the appropriate staff to delegate to, to carry out the responsibilities of satisfying the needs. Delegation is not only a nursing intervention but a nursing responsibility; it ensures that a care team will work as a unit to deliver the best care possible.

Delegation is a process that, used appropriately, can result in safe and effective nursing care. Delegation can free the nurse for attending more complex patient care needs, develop the skills of nursing assistive personnel and promote cost containment for the healthcare organization, The RN determines appropriate nursing practice by using nursing knowledge, professional judgment and the legal authority to practice nursing, RNs must know the context of their practice, including the state nurse practice act and professional standards as well as the facility/organization's policies and procedures related to delegation.(ANA,2005)

Promoting Interdisciplinary Care.

Theoretically interdisciplinary care and the methods in which to carry it out should be a skill or common knowledge for a medical professional. The mechanics of how to carry it out should depend on the type of setting. Considering that this is a clinic,