Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
Capella University Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation-Step-By-Step Guide
This guide will demonstrate how to complete the Capella University Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation assignment based on general principles of academic writing. Here, we will show you the A, B, Cs of completing an academic paper, irrespective of the instructions. After guiding you through what to do, the guide will leave one or two sample essays at the end to highlight the various sections discussed below.
How to Research and Prepare for Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
Whether one passes or fails an academic assignment such as the Capella University Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation depends on the preparation done beforehand. The first thing to do once you receive an assignment is to quickly skim through the requirements. Once that is done, start going through the instructions one by one to clearly understand what the instructor wants. The most important thing here is to understand the required format—whether it is APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.
After understanding the requirements of the paper, the next phase is to gather relevant materials. The first place to start the research process is the weekly resources. Go through the resources provided in the instructions to determine which ones fit the assignment. After reviewing the provided resources, use the university library to search for additional resources. After gathering sufficient and necessary resources, you are now ready to start drafting your paper.
How to Write the Introduction for Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
The introduction for the Capella University Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation is where you tell the instructor what your paper will encompass. In three to four statements, highlight the important points that will form the basis of your paper. Here, you can include statistics to show the importance of the topic you will be discussing. At the end of the introduction, write a clear purpose statement outlining what exactly will be contained in the paper. This statement will start with “The purpose of this paper…” and then proceed to outline the various sections of the instructions.
How to Write the Body for Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
After the introduction, move into the main part of the Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation assignment, which is the body. Given that the paper you will be writing is not experimental, the way you organize the headings and subheadings of your paper is critically important. In some cases, you might have to use more subheadings to properly organize the assignment. The organization will depend on the rubric provided. Carefully examine the rubric, as it will contain all the detailed requirements of the assignment. Sometimes, the rubric will have information that the normal instructions lack.
Another important factor to consider at this point is how to do citations. In-text citations are fundamental as they support the arguments and points you make in the paper. At this point, the resources gathered at the beginning will come in handy. Integrating the ideas of the authors with your own will ensure that you produce a comprehensive paper. Also, follow the given citation format. In most cases, APA 7 is the preferred format for nursing assignments.
How to Write the Conclusion for Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
After completing the main sections, write the conclusion of your paper. The conclusion is a summary of the main points you made in your paper. However, you need to rewrite the points and not simply copy and paste them. By restating the points from each subheading, you will provide a nuanced overview of the assignment to the reader.
How to Format the References List for Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
The very last part of your paper involves listing the sources used in your paper. These sources should be listed in alphabetical order and double-spaced. Additionally, use a hanging indent for each source that appears in this list. Lastly, only the sources cited within the body of the paper should appear here.
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Assessment 2: Quality Improvement Initiative Evaluation
Introduction
¡QI: A systematic approach guided by data
¡Improves the quality & safety of healthcare delivery
¡Improving healthcare quality & safe is a nursing priority
¡The presentation will discuss a QI initiative
¡Evaluate the success of the QI initiative
¡Recommend additional indicators and protocols
Current QI Initiative
¡QI initiative- Prevention of CAUTI
¡Aim: reduce the incidence of CAUTIs
¡The initiative focuses on three areas:
¡Prevention of inappropriate short-term catheter use
¡Nurse-driven timely removal of urinary catheters
¡Urinary catheter care during placement
Rationale for the QI Initiative
¡Increasing CAUTI rates among hospitalized patients
¡CAUTIs accounted for about 45% of all HAIs
¡Highest prevalence: Females; Patients not on antimicrobial therapy
¡Immunocompromised, Diabetes, & renal insufficiency
¡Prevalence in neuro-diseases was 5-fold higher
¡Consequences: Prolonged hospitalization; Increased costs
¡Reduced QoL; Mortality
Strategic organizational initiatives
Timely interventions to increase response to patient needs
Spend 10% of the budget on addressing staff concerns
Apply technology at the point of care
Quality Improvement Initiative
Health breaks for nurses to increase response to patients with acute upper respiratory infection
Objective: prevent heart attack and reduce waiting time in the emergency department
Welcome, all. Every health care organization works towards achieving some set benchmarks. These benchmarks can be organizational or based on the local, state, and national standards. Depending on the performance of an organization, quality improvement initiatives are vital to improving patient care and the overall organizational results. The current quality improvement initiative involves health breaks for nurses to increase response to patients with acute upper respiratory infection. The main objective of the initiative is to reduce waiting time in the emergency department and prevent breathing complications leading to death. Dall’Ora et al. (2020) found that increased waiting time causes overcrowding which can make nurses be overwhelmed and cause burnout. To ensure that nurses can provide optimal care, initiatives that address their mental and physical health should be a priority area.
Rationale behind the Quality Improvement Initiative
Increase nurses’ commitment to work
Enhance patient safety
Support nurses’ physical and mental health
Improve interprofessional collaboration
Reduce fatigue
Nurses in the emergency department deal with critical health matters. Lack of concentration or motivation to work can pose a considerable risk to patients’ health. In response, health breaks to make them refresh and increase their focus are one way of increasing nurses’ commitment to work. At all times, patients’ safety should guide decision-making and areas of underperformance fixed timely. Focused nurses can also work in teams since they are energized and committed to achieving a common objective. Such a working model improves interprofessional collaboration that is critical in enhancing patient outcomes. In health practice, initiatives that reduce nurses’ fatigue enable them to address patient needs promptly.
Unaddressed Problems
Nurses’ preferences
Long time between shifts
Nurse relationships
Patients flow
Nurse-to-patient ratio
Despite the quality improvement initiative centered on nurses’ health state to increase response time to patients with chronic illnesses, some areas were unaddressed, justifying the need for improvement. One such area is nurses’ preferences. This area is a problem since the health break was pre-arranged without engaging nurses. Also, nurses are required to go for physical jogging, making a huge number uncomfortable. To a huge extent, the policy seems to be somewhat forced despite the critical role of exercising and refreshing on mental, emotional, and physical health. Time taken between shifts was unaddressed since many nurses become exhausted due to long shifts. The initiative did not also consider other issues increasing waiting time, such as patient flow and the nurse-to-patient ratio.
Issues Arising from the Initiative
Disengagement
Lack of motivation
Nurses skipping healthy breaks
Emotional breakdowns
Lack of cooperation
Due to the initiative’s failure to engage nurses, some issues emerged, implying that the desired effects would be underachieved. One of such issues is some nurses being disengaged instead of being more active than before. The other indicator is a lack of motivation to collaborate or participate in the healthy breaks since they primarily focus on physical fitness. Worse, cases of some nurses skipping healthy breaks characterized the program. Other related issues include emotional breakdowns and lack of cooperation since the initiative does not address the universal needs of the nurses. Given this, the entire situation demonstrates a scenario where chronically ill patients in the emergency department continue to be underserved.
Initiative vs. National Benchmarks
National Benchmarks Supporting the Quality Improvement Initiative
Waiting time in emergency departments- 40 minutes (average)
Medication errors- keep below 1%
Nurse-to-patient ratio [1:4]
To determine an organization’s direction, the current performance level should match or exceed national benchmarks in terms of excellence. Since the issue of concern is low response time, it is crucial to be guided by national benchmarks related to waiting time in the emergency department. Woodworth and Holmes (2020) posited that the average waiting time in the emergency department should be approximately forty minutes. Measures should be put in place to reduce the average waiting time as much as possible. Increased waiting time leads to overcrowding in the emergency department. Overcrowding overwhelms nurses leading to exhaustion which increases chances for medication errors (Salen & Norman, 2017). Overcrowding also affects the nurse-to-patient ratio, which is mostly 1:4 to optimize patient care.
Analysis of the Benchmarks Related to the Quality Improvement Initiative
Successful Quality Improvement Initiative Outcomes
Mental health concerns
Reduced fatigue [physical health]
Nurse-patient relationship
Additions to the Quality Improvement Initiative
Consider alternatives [variation of activities]
Implement a feedback program
Teach break scheduling
After an in-depth analysis of the quality improvement initiative, several outcome areas can be considered to be a huge success. One such area is improved mental health status of the nurses. Due to exposure with many illness complications and demanding work conditions, nurses work-life balance can be adversely affected leading to mental exhaustion. Long shifts cause physical exhaustion, affecting nurses’ concentration and motivation to work (Jang et al., 2021). Healthy breaks improve mental and physical health, justifying their adoption as a quality improvement initiative since patients with severe upper respiratory infections are handled better. Timely response also enhances the nurse-patient relationship. Despite these successes, additions are necessary to avoid underperformance in any area. As earlier mentioned, the healthy breaks focus too much on physical exercises. Although they are quite refreshing, outcomes can be improved by considering variation of activities. Some nurses would consider surfing, reading, or playing chess, among other activities. Immediate feedback should be part of the program to assess nurses’ perceptions, feelings, and attitudes to adjust it where necessary.
Critical Aspects of the Quality Improvement Initiative Presentation
Response time (RT)
Impact of nurses’ health on patient care (I)
Interventions for improving nurses’ mental and physical health (IN)
Interprofessional team perspectives (IT)
Quality Improvement Recommendations (QI)
This presentation covers various interrelated areas concerning practice outcomes improvement. A huge segment is about the connection between response time and patient conditions, as discussed in the beginning. The presentation shows how extended waiting time is a huge risk to patients’ health and complicates their conditions. Such waiting-time also affects nurses’ health, which adversely impacts patient care. Problems such as disengagement and a high probability of making medication errors have been highlighted. Other critical aspects include specific quality improvement initiative’s activities and how the situation can be improved, interprofessional team perspectives, and quality improvement recommendations. Their average portions, as covered in this presentation, are as illustrated in the chart.
Interprofessional Team Perspectives
Optimal patient care depends on nurses’ mental and physical health
Nurses should have an active social life
Nurses should participate in physical activities outside work
Recharge time should be a priority in health provision
Nurses should keep regular eating and health schedules
Perspectives affect how stakeholders and health care teams interpret situations. They also affect commitment towards evidence-based change projects. Some of the interprofessional team perspectives related to the quality improvement initiative include the view that optimal patient care depends on health care providers’ health. Besides their active professional role, nurses should have an active social life to be mentally, emotionally, and physically stable to provide optimal health care. Recharge time is also perceived as a priority in health practice, with exercises being highly recommended to release endorphins and boost the mood (Borglin et al., 2021). The health of nurses also matters; nurses should keep regular eating and health schedules.
Interprofessional Team Components and Influence
Team Member Perspectives
Nurse administrator- nurses’ health is directly proportional to patient care
Heads of IT department- technology and care are inseparable
Head of ED- response time can increase by reducing fatigue
Fitness coach- nurses must prioritize personal health
Impact of Team Member Perspectives on the Quality Improvement Initiative
Focus of QI should be on:
Physical and mental health
Perception
Support [communication and mentorship]
The departments and individuals consulted had different perspectives on the issue of waiting time in the emergency department and its effects on patients with breathing difficulties. The nurse administrator central claim is that nurses’ health is directly proportional to patient care. Research also supports this claim by holding the view that nurses’ self-care reduces anxiety and increases their motivation and concentration, helping to care for patients better (Ross et al., 2017). The head of the IT department’s view is that technology and quality patient care are inseparable. Accordingly, it is vital to adopt practices such as anticipatory emergency to enable the nurses to prepare adequately according to the number of patients expected in the emergency room daily. Other perspectives include the conviction that response time can increase by reducing nurses’ fatigue, and personal health should be a personal priority.
Recommendations for the Future: Part 1
Additional Indicators and Protocols
Involve nurses in scheduling
Reduce non-clinical tasks
Organize health meetings
Create comfortable respite areas
Include nurses in policy discussions
Due to the issues hampering the effectiveness of the current quality improvement initiative, additional indicators are necessary to make future programs better. One way towards achieving maximum results is engaging the nurses. Mudallal et al. (2017) claimed nurses’ level of emotional exhaustion reduces when the administration engages them in policy discussions. In this case, health breaks would be nurse-centered and consider nurses’ views to increase motivation and participation rates. Such programs will make nurses more focused and energized to better respond to patients visiting the emergency department. Non-clinical tasks should be reduced as much as possible. For instance, post-discharge follow-up should be removed from the emergency department protocols to depressurize nurses. Healthy meetings should be frequently held and complemented by creating comfortable respite areas for refreshment and focus.
Recommendations for the Future
Process Changes
The management should:
Maintain adequate staffing levels
Do away with mandatory overtime
Anticipatory emergency programs
Provide staff education on healthy breaks
In the current scenario, health breaks to increase response time are necessitated by nurses’ mental and physical exhaustion. Fixing this problem is expected to keep them energized and highly focused on their role and respond to patient needs promptly. However, some process changes are vital to achieving this objective. One such change is the management being more committed to maintaining adequate nursing levels. Issues that lead to turnover should be avoided, and the current nursing team should be kept motivated as much as possible. Other changes include doing away with mandatory overtime, which increases exhaustion, and adopting anticipatory emergency programs. Nurses should also be trained on quality health breaks and the impacts of each option.
New Technologies to Enhance Outcomes
Patient tracking systems to improve nurse schedules and shifts’ planning
Consider telehealth to administer care remotely
Use NurseGrid to fill open shifts
Technology can also be instrumental in improving outcomes. Technology is an indispensable part of quality health care and patient safety since it improves precision. In the current quality improvement initiative, technology is required too. For instance, patient tracking systems are necessary to improve nurse schedules and shifts’ planning. Indeed, this is a way of improving anticipatory emergency outcomes since the number of patients expected to visit the emergency department for medication for upper respiratory infections will be known in advance. For patients covering long distances, telehealth can be considered. Telehealth enables a majority of services received in a hospital to be offered remotely via digital technologies, including health information services, provider and patient education, and self-care tips (Blandford et al., 2020). The NurseGrid application can be used to fill open shifts to avoid time wastage.