Registered Nurse Delegation Essay

The National Council of State Boards in Nursing defines delegation as “transferring to a competent individual the authority to perform a selected nursing task in a selected situation” (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Resources section, 4). When delegating, the registered nurse (RN) assigns nursing tasks to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) while still remaining accountable for the patient and the task that was assigned. Delegating is a management strategy that is used to provide more efficient care to patients. Authorizing other individuals to take on nursing responsibilities allows the nurse to complete other tasks that need tended to. However, delegation is done at the nurses’

Delegating is one of the most valuable leadership skills a charge nurse possesses.   Effective delegation skills are essential for proper patient care and safety. Delegation is defined as when a nursing professional entrusts the performance of a nursing task to someone who is qualified, competent, and able to perform the assigned task (Q1).  In order for the charge nurse to delegate effectively,  he or she must take into consideration the patient's needs as well as the capabilities of the nursing professional for whom he or she is delegating the task to. The American Nurses Association outlines The Five Rights of Delegation as a guideline for nursing professionals.  The first right is for the professional to determine if the task is one to

Describe the roles and responsibilities of the Enrolled Nurse, Doctor and Pharmacist involved in the medication cycle.

In 2003 during the last semester of nursing school, my life was devastated as my ex-husband was arrested as a serial rapist. This was overbearing and I thought this as being impossible to recover from. A breaking point came as I approached a red light deciding whether to deliberately run my minivan into oncoming traffic with my two young children to end our lives. Only days later, I once again felt that I was at the lowest point in my life as the reality of this event truly hit during a medical-surgical examination.

The role of a family nurse practitioner is a fundamental portion of the future of healthcare. The role is clearly not as understood by other healthcare professionals as needed which results in the disagreement if the role of a family nurse practitioner is even required for primary care. As people are getting older, the need for medical professionals that can provide patient care to our ever growing population increases. The need for the role of family nurse practitioners will grow too. The role of the family nurse practitioner, the ability of the FNP to be able to transition into their role.

Advanced practice registered nurses play an exciting but challenging part in the health care field. Given that, there is a spectrum of advanced nursing roles, designed by the national council of state boards of nursing. The specialty roles include certified nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, certified midwife nurse, and certified registered nurse anesthetist. Certified nurse practitioners are responsible for primary disease management and health promotion. Education and counseling are done by these practitioners.

The secret to effective delegation is both as simple and as complex as the words the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) uses to define delegation: "Delegation is transferring to a competent individual the authority to perform selected tasks in a selected situation. The nurse retains the accountability for delegation." (Case, 2010).

This article discusses about the process of nursing delegation. For the process of nursing delegation, it must have strong communication, empowered staff, and organizational support. The guidelines identify 5 rights of delegation, which include right task, right circumstances, right person, right direction & communication, and right supervision & evaluation. When a delegator, such as a nurse, delegates, they will remain responsible for the tasks that were delegated. Delegation of an action/task is done based on the patient’s safety and their quality of care. Following the process enables a nurse to appropriately delegate to benefit the care of the patient.

Delegation occurs on a daily basis in nursing and understanding the parts of delegation I remain accountable and responsible for will be important to ensure I am functioning appropriately as a registered nurse. Accountability also occurs in daily interactions with peer registered nurses. The understanding of accountability in this role is vital given the registered nurse is part of a team and must frequently interact with fellow nurses. Understanding accountability to peers helps with building confidence between peers and strengthens the working relationship. Since I have had very little experience in delegation as well as minimal interactions with peer nurses, other than preceptors, understanding the differences and roles of accountability and responsibility are important.

Effective delegation by registered nurses is a concern within nursing and health care management. Effective delegation by registered nurses is of concern at all times. With the growing demands placed upon registered nurses, effective delegation has become increasingly pressing in order for registered nurses to be able to concentrate on their performance nursing activities. Registered nurses are frequently team leaders and are responsible for the nursing processes and outcomes regarding patient care. 'As the health care system continues to restructure, registered nurses are finding an increased number of lesser-skilled workers assigned to deliver patient care ' (Parsons, 1998 ). This process requires management and delegation skills. Delegation is one of the key factors in effective teamwork, the improvement of the delegation skills of registered nurses would be of great benefit. 'Delegation has to do with human resources being used to their fullest potential ' (Kaernested & Bragadottir, 2012). Good delegation skills can have a positive impact on teamwork and job satisfaction, providing registered nurses with more time to fulfil their professional role expectations, and reduce the staff turnover rate. Registered nurses working in the acute care setting, despite high workloads are reluctant to delegate. Many registered nurses find delegation time consuming and therefore easier to attend to tasks themselves. When

One study stated the most intricate skills a nurse leader can have is delegation; proper judgment and knowledge is required to effectively transfer the authority, responsibility, and accountability to a subordinate. Understanding the concept of delegation is essential in conveying an assignment, this is the final accountability for the care of a patient. When delegation is not effective, valuable resources are substandard (Weydt, 2010).

The process of delegation can be traced back to Florence Nightingale who is recognized as the Founder of Modern Nursing. “Let whoever is in charge keep this simple question in her head (not, how can I always do this right thing myself, but) how can I provide for this right thing to be always done?” (Nightingale, 1860, Chapter 3). With the increasing demands placed on the registered nurse and the challenges of cost containment efforts, it is vital in today’s nursing practice to equip the registered nurse with the knowledge and training required to achieve and subsequently implement and sustain the ability to delegate effectively. The definition of delegation as stated by the American Nurses Association (ANA) is “The transfer of responsibility for the performance of a task from one individual to another while retaining accountability for the outcome” (ANA, 2012, p.6). Various perceptions concerning delegation influence interpretation and ones’ application or non-application of the delegation process. For states and institutions that currently are without formal delegation policies and/or processes, bringing clarity to what is and what is not delegation may indeed be a step in the right direction. Effective delegation skills have been shown to enhance teamwork, increase job satisfaction, improve patient outcomes and decrease expenses. (Kaernested & Bragadottir, 2012) The desire of this paper is to address current delegation policies at both the state and organizational

Delegation is an essential nursing skill. In today’s health care system, delegating part of your responsibility is essential because of the shortage of nurses and the increasing numbers of people becoming sick. The use of delegation is regulated by the State “Nursing Practice Act”, the National Council of State Board Nursing and the policies and procedures of the organization the nurse is working for. Some will define delegation as a transfer of competence from a nurse to another nurse or Assistive personnel, others will say, it is the distribution of work among personnel. It is the process of transferring the authority and responsibility to another team member to complete a task while retaining the accountability (ATI).

When school ended in May, I expected to have a nice laid back summer. I was excited to finally be able to sleep late and hang out with my friends whenever I wanted. I didn’t remember that I had been accepted into a summer program. I would be interning at the Sabine Medical Center with CLAHEC. Central Louisiana Area Health Education Center is a three week program in June where students who are interested in the medical field go and shadow local doctors and nurses to see if they want to pursue a career in medicine. I wanted to either be a Registered Nurse or Physical Therapist.

Without jobs in the medical field, population would lower numerously. Registered nurses work harder than people think. Saving someone's life or having to tell someone they have a terminal illness isn't easy. Being a registered nurse requires a registered nurse license, a Bachelors or Associates degree, and the ability to treat all people equally.