Leadership And The Delegation In Nursing Nursing Essay Sample
Delegation is an essential skill of nursing that may seem simple but is a complex process requiring decision making. Delegation can be defined as the assignment of a specific activity or task from one person to another while remaining accountable for the outcome. The person delegating is the delegator, and the person being delegated is the delegatee. This usually occurs between a registered nurse and unlicensed assistive personnel. For example, an RN can delegate a UAP to assist a client with feeding; however, the RN will remain accountable for the overall care. Therefore, before delegating a task it is essential to understand the process and the rules and regulations for that state and or jurisdiction in an effort to prevent errors from occurring. For instance, according to ANA’s Principles for Delegation, RNs can not delegate assignments that require nursing judgment such as the assessment and evaluation of the effect of interventions on the care offered to a client. In addition, the delegator should also be knowledgeable and understand the five rights of delegation as well.
The five rights of delegation include the right task, the right circumstance, the right person, the right direction and communication, and the right supervision and evaluation. When determining whether or not the person is “right” it is important to consider the delegatee's knowledge and experience to complete the task successfully. When selecting a task the delegator should make sure that the task falls within the delegatee’s job description. When considering the right direction and communication the delegator should clarify any questions as well as provide a time frame and any observations available. Furthermore, the nurse should use good communication techniques as this can lead to effective client care. The delegator must also make sure that it is the right circumstance referring to if the client is stable enough to be treated by a UAP. Lastly, the delegator must consider the right supervision referring to the monitoring and feedback that should be offered. By using the five rights as a guide to delegation, high-quality care can be provided. Especially, considering the nursing shortage that is steadily increasing. This research question is how has delegation positively impacted the nursing shortage.
Nursing shortages occur when the demand for nursing professionals is greater than the supply. This has been seen more recently since the latest pandemic, Covid 19. Since Covid 19 began the number of critically ill patients requiring care has increased greatly resulting in an excessive amount of stress on health care providers. As a result, team nursing modules have been implemented which allows groups of professionals to work together to provide client-centered care. In addition, delegation has also been implemented with consideration of the five rights. Delegation has impacted the nursing shortage positively by reducing the nursing workload, improving the quality of care, and improving the effectiveness of management.
It has been found in studies that the workload itself is an important facet in balancing work and private life. (Edwards et al., 2018) This aspect can either result in an increased burnout rate or job satisfaction. With this in mind, the number of tasks and responsibilities expected to be completed by a nurse should be carefully considered as negative job satisfaction has contributed to high turnover rates and nursing shortages. In fact, according to Cipriano (2010) threats of nursing shortages have increased the urgency for staffing members to be able to effectively delegate. Delegation can reduce the workload for nurses due to the ability to assign low-risk and routine tasks to assistant members of the healthcare team. This allows the nurse the opportunity to focus on higher level tasks and more critical patients. Therefore, the quality of client care can also be improved.
According to Sharma and Barrow (2021) nursing shortages have created an environment in which delegation is needed and if used correctly can improve client care outcomes. This can be seen in the Wagner (2018) project where she assessed whether improved delegation and communication could result in improved client care. The results of her project were that increased delegation and communication lead to a decrease in falls and an improvement in patient satisfaction. In addition, delegation can also improve client care by reducing preventable incidents this being due to the nurses having more free time. Lastly, the use of delegation has led to an increase in the effectiveness of management.
“If you pick the right people and give them the opportunity to spread their wings – and put compensation as a carrier behind it – you almost don’t have to manage them.” – Jack Welch, former CEO, General Electric. According to Muir (1995), one way of providing trust is through delegation. Riisgaard et. al (2016) stated how effective delegation provides many benefits including mobilized resources, shared responsibilities, and tasks reduction. This allows an increase in the effectiveness of management. With less tasks and shared responsibilities the manager will have more time to assess the staff’s abilities, strengths, and weaknesses. Furthermore, delegation helps enhance the credibility of a manager (Muir, 2006).
In conclusion, the nursing shortage has increased the need for delegation. This vital skill if efficiently done can be a great help to the healthcare field. Yet, the five rights must be considered in efforts to prevent error from occurring. As a result of efficient delegation, client care can be improved. Also, the nurse's workload can be reduced and the effectiveness of management can be increased. After all, delegation has positively impacted the nursing shortage greatly.
