NR 451 Week 4 Evaluating Quality Patient Outcomes

Sample Answer

For this weeks’ discussion, we are discussing quality improvement and change. These improvements are not only necessary to decrease occurrence of harm and or wrongful death, but also in improving the quality of life for our patients. Data can aid in the evaluation of effectiveness, cost, planning delivery of care. It gives insight to the allocation and utilization of resources, and also assesses the accessibility of care for our patients in varied settings. These considerations allow for concerns in economic matters, ethical matters and social diversities.

When discussing an example of data that reflects poor quality of care, I would like to use a personal experience with my own hospital setting. I do this, not because I feel the place I work is a poor place, but we experienced something that I believe is probably widespread and I think many could benefit. We were required to do an error prevention class for the hospital. The wrongful death and harm statistics were from our very own organization. These were people, families in our community effected directly by errors within our health system……. deaths in some cases, by mistake of personnel.

It is an eye opener to see charts, graphs and data that reflect errors that you yourself could have easily made. We have had a huge shift in error prevention and culture for error identification. We were shown that a 15% spike in error was seen during our go live with a new software system. This data absolutely identified areas of much needed improvement, more than that …….it identified that change was essential, our patients lives depended on it. We don’t talk about the astonishing numbers that reflect medical error and wrongful death enough. It is not easy to talk about.

We are all human, but when you understand that your own life, the lives are your family members receiving care are at stake when healthcare has a “glitch”, it is a whole new perspective. In our assigned article this week it states,” today we may be doing what we can, but tomorrow we can improve”,(Hughes,2008). Quality improvement is definitely a part of daily workflow, because every day we can make strides to perform better, be more efficient, more cost effective. As nurses, we are in actual one on one contact with patients, more than other discipline in healthcare, (ANA,2015).

We spend more time, often develop the relationship aspect of healthcare and are looked to for education, intervention, avocation and support by our patients and their families. We bring the “human” to the very technical, often harsh reality of healthcare. I read an article of the influence of quality improvement and how it effects not only our patients by our own work. I feel this sums up the need to change through improvement. “As advances are made, patient’s needs and expectations of healthcare are changing as well.

It is part of the dedication to the nursing profession to develop quality and safety measures, identify gaps of knowledge, share innovations of quality and performance improvement initiatives, incorporate technologies to impact workflow efficiency, safety, and cost,” (Weston&Roberts,2013). I read that, jotted in down, and when typing it, I read it out loud about three times…….try it. WOW……. Those are some BIG shoes to fill!! I have often stated about my own self,” I am just the bedside nurse”. Class and professor, I dare say that according to the above statement, in todays’ healthcare, there is no such thing.

I have taken this statement from this article, as a personal challenge. I have placed it in a sticky note in my locker. For those days, those hard ones, like I just had last night,( you know when you think as you walk to the car at the end of a shift, checking out groceries at Walmart is looking pretty promising!! LOL) to remind myself, the BIG picture is not mine to “fix”, however, if I commit to these things in the experiences and in the lives of patients I am dealing with a day to day basis, if we all do, the BIG picture will improve without a doubt!

• Weston, M., & Roberts, D. (2013). The influence of quality improvement efforts
  on patient outcome and nursing work. The Online Journal of Issues in
  Nursing, 18(3). https //doi.org/10.3912/ojin.vol18no3Links to an external site.
• Hughes, R. G. (Ed.). (2008). Patient safety and quality An evidence-based handbook for nurses(AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043). Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Retrieved from https //archive.ahrq.gov/professionals/clinicians-providers/resources/nursing/resources/nurseshdbk/ Links to an external site.
• American Nurses Association. (2015). Nursing Scope and standards of practice (3rd ed.). Silver Spring, MD Author