416 Mod 6 Decision-Making Discussion
Decision-Making on Procedure/Practice Modification
Share an example from your nursing Decision-Making on Procedure/Practice Modification setting of how a decision was made to change a procedure or practice.
What steps were used in the decision-making process?
What evidence was considered for decision-making?
Was the change effective? Provide rationale.
A direct personal nursing practice experience is needed, but we can provide a hypothetical example based on the general process that healthcare professionals follow to modify a procedure or practice.
Let’s say the healthcare facility I work in wants to modify the medication administration process for patients. The current practice is to administer medication using a paper-based system, which has resulted in medication errors in the past. The nursing team wants to use an electronic medication administration record (eMAR) system to improve patient safety.
The following steps may be used in the decision-making process:
- Identify the problem: The nursing team identifies that the current medication administration process has resulted in medication errors.
- Research potential solutions: The nursing team researches potential solutions to the problem, such as an electronic medication administration record system.
- Evaluate potential solutions: The nursing team evaluates the potential solutions based on their effectiveness, feasibility, and cost.
- Obtain buy-in from stakeholders: The nursing team presents the potential solution to key stakeholders, such as the healthcare facility’s administration, to obtain their support.
- Implement the solution: The nursing team implements the solution, in this case, the eMAR system.
- Evaluate the solution’s effectiveness: The nursing team monitors the implementation of the eMAR system and evaluates its effectiveness in reducing medication errors.
- Modify the solution as needed: The nursing team will modify the solution if the eMAR system does not effectively reduce medication errors.
In terms of evidence, the nursing team may have consulted published literature on the effectiveness of eMAR systems in reducing medication errors and consulted with other healthcare facilities that have implemented similar systems.
Whether the change is effective will depend on the specific implementation and context. However, eMAR systems have generally been shown to reduce medication errors and improve patient safety. Therefore, the nursing team’s decision to switch to an eMAR system will likely reduce medication errors, provided that the implementation is done correctly and staff members are trained to use the new system effectively.