Advocating for the Nursing Role in Program Design and Implementation

Advocating for the Nursing Role in Program Design and Implementation

Interviewer:
Tell us about a healthcare program, within your practice. What are the costs and projected outcomes of this program?

Interviewee
: Healthcare organizations are increasingly exploring to improve the quality of care and cut healthcare costs. A post discharge follow-up telephone call program is my proposed healthcare program. According to Bhandari et al. (2022), the reduction of Medicare reimbursement to hospitals as a result of readmission is among the consequences of the enactment of the Affordable Care Act. The reimbursement penalty has made healthcare organizations to explore diverse strategies of improving care transitions and reducing rates of readmissions.  Among the widely recognized interventions is the implementation of post-discharge follow-up telephone call programs, a transitional care strategy aimed at improving patient’s adherence to discharge recommendations. No costs will be incurred in the design and implementation of the project because nurses and social workers will make phone calls using the hospitals landline number.

The program is projected to reduce readmission rates, improve care quality and improve patient satisfaction. According to Bhandari et al. (2022), the aim of post-discharge telephone calls is to identify patients who need to be guided on their recovery, extend support and care after hospitalization, reduce hospital readmissions and improve patient satisfaction. The study by Woods et al (2019 revealed that telephone  follow-up calls  post discharge  can meet patient communication and information needs, improve patient satisfaction, improve follow-up appointment attendance  and self-management and reduce post discharge problems.

Interviewer:
Who is your target population?

Interviewee:
My target population is older adult patients 65 years and above

Interviewer:
What is the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of this healthcare program? Can you provide examples?

Interviewee
: Numerous stakeholders influence the implementation of change in practice of best practices.  Also, these stakeholders are affected by practice change. Also, there exists strong drive for the active engagement of stakeholders in and making decisions about changing practice. To achieve these, the roles of the numerous stakeholders practice change implementation, which include managers, nurses, patients, families, and other healthcare professionals at macro, meso, and micro level of the health system must be understood. Being knowledgeable of   of the role of these stakeholders will help the implementation and adoption of innovative practices more effectively and efficiently, and eventual improvement of healthcare outcomes (Ham-Baloyi, 2022).

The nurse can provide input for the design of the post discharge phone call program by deciding the number of times the patient should be called in a day or the specific time of the day the patient nurse or social worker should make the telephone call. For example, the nurse can assist the program design to decide if patients will be contacted three times a day over two consecutive days.  Also, the nurse can offer input on the information that the patient will be given during the phone call and the questions that the patient will be asked, Advocating for the Nursing Role in Program Design and Implementation

Interviewer:
What is your role as an advocate for your target population for this healthcare program? Do you have input into design decisions? How else do you impact design?

Interviewee
: Nurses have tan ethical and professional obligation of advocating for patients. According to Kurt and Gurdogan (2023), patients are vulnerable and regarded potentially disadvantaged in healthcare settings. Thus, patients requires an advocate for decisions and information about their health. Since nurses are in direct contact with patients compared to other healthcare providers, they are the ideal providers to assist patients in managing themselves and making decisions about themselves. Through patient advocacy, increases patient satisfaction, ensure provision of safe and quality patient care, and results in positive patient outcomes. Also, patient advocacy positively influence nurses by increasing motivation, professional satisfaction, autonomy, and self-confidence.

Post discharge follow-up telephone calls are important for older patients since they find it challenging with post discharge care. According to Yen et al. (2023),  older adult patients usually encounter problems following discharge, such inability to obtain adequate care services, unawareness of where to obtain continuing care services, and lack of understanding of the amount of time they require to recover and  where they can obtain information they require.  After discharge, 60-70 percent of elderly patients suffer emotional distress, with 90 percent and 20 to 40 percent suffering from physical disturbances and unmet demands. Compared to adults below 65 years, older patients have a high likelihood of h having numerous chronic conditions or debilitating problems such as poor walking ability, weight loss, decline in muscle endurance and heightened risk of fall.  Elderly patients require longer r times to recover and more active and continuous post-discharge services.

Interviewer:
What is the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation? How does this role vary between design and implementation of healthcare programs? Can you provide examples?

Interviewee
: The discharge from hospital of elderly patients is challenging these patients have multiple care nee. It involves numerous steps that need coordination of the patient care team, in which nurses play a vital role. For discharge planning procedures to be effective, there is the need for them to be collaborated with post-discharge services to make sure patients have a smoot transition. Clear goals and responsibilities enhance the work of multidisciplinary team involved in patient discharge. However, due to heavy workloads, nurses are rarely involved in hospital discharge and post discharge follow-up care (Liljas et al., 2023).

Interviewer
: Who are the members of a healthcare team that you believe are most needed to implement a program? Can you explain why?

Interviewee:
The members of the healthcare team most needed to implement the program are social workers, registered nurses and nurse practitioners. According to Hayajneh et al. (2022), a discharge planner can be a social worker, case manager, attending physician or nurse. Discharge planning entails timely identification and assessment of patients who need help; working with the multidisciplinary team, patient and family; proposing alternatives for care continuity and referring patients to facilities or programs to that meet patients’ need; and collaborating with care centers in the community to address service gaps.

Registered nurses and social workers will be responsible for making phone calls to patients while nurse practitioners will be reviewing the calls made to discharge patients. Nurses will make a simple , scripted the initial call at 24-48 hours after discharge while social workers will make a  second call at 72 -96 hours post discharge. The nurse and social workers will call patient on the telephone number listed in their electronic medical record. If the patient do not pick the call, another call will be made to a caregiver number. Social workers will be given a daily roster of patients who the nurses had already contacted within 48 hours post discharge from the hospital. The social workers will complete the second reminder phone call while sitting beside a nurse to permit for real-time triage of patient-identified clinical concerns or obstacles.

 

References

Bhandari, N., Epane, J., Reeves, J., Cochran, C., & Shen, J. (2022). Post-Discharge Transitional Care Program and Patient Compliance With Follow-Up Activities.
Journal of Patient Experience, 9,
23743735221086756. doi:
10.1177/23743735221086756

Hayajneh, A. A., Hweidi, I. M., & Dieh, M. W. (2020). Nurses’ knowledge, perception and practice toward discharge planning in acute care settings: A systematic review.
Nursing Open, 7
(5), 1313–1320. doi:
10.1002/nop2.547

Ham-Baloyi, W. (2022). Nurses’ roles in changing practice through implementing best practices: A systematic review.
Health SA, 27
, 1776. doi:
10.4102/hsag.v27i0.1776

Kurt, D., &  Gurdogan, E. P. (2023). Professional autonomy and patient advocacy in nurses.
Collegian, 30
(2), 327-334.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colegn.2022.09.015

Lilja, A. E., Jensen, N. K., Pulkki, J., & Agerholm, J. (2023). Nurses’ Roles, Responsibilities and Actions in the Hospital Discharge Process of Older Adults with Health and Social Care Needs in Three Nordic Cities: A Vignette Study.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20
(19), 6809. doi:
10.3390/ijerph20196809

Woods, C. E., Jones, R., O’Shea, E., Grist, E., Wigers, J., & Usher, K. 92019). Nurse-led postdischarge telephone follow-up calls: A mixed study systematic review.
Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28
(19-20), 3386-3399.
https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14951

Yen, H.Y., Liu, D., Chi, M. J., & Huang, H. Y. (2023). Awareness of and subjective needs for post-discharge healthcare services among older adult patients.
BMC Nursing, 22
, 129. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-023-01247-3

 

Advocating for the Nursing Role in Program Design and Implementation

As their names imply, the honeyguide bird and the honey badger both share an affinity for honey. Honeyguide birds specialize in finding beehives but struggle to access the honey within. Honey badgers are well-equipped to raid beehives but cannot always find them. However, these two honey-loving species have learned to collaborate on an effective means to meet their objectives. The honeyguide bird guides honey badgers to newly discovered hives. Once the honey badger has ransacked the hive, the honey guide bird safely enters to enjoy the leftover honey.

Much like honeyguide birds and honey badgers, nurses and health professionals from other specialty areas can—and should—collaborate to design effective programs. Nurses bring specialties to the table that make them natural partners to professionals with different specialties. When nurses take the requisite leadership in becoming involved throughout the healthcare system, these partnerships can better design and deliver highly effective programs that meet objectives.

In this Assignment, you will practice this type of leadership by advocating for a healthcare program. Equally as important, you will advocate for a collaborative role of the nurse in the design and implementation of this program. To do this, assume you are preparing to be interviewed by a professional organization/publication regarding your thoughts on the role of the nurse in the design and implementation of new healthcare programs.

Resources

 

Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.

Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.

WEEKLY RESOURCES

To Prepare:

Review the Resources and reflect on your thinking regarding the role of the nurse in the design and implementation of new healthcare programs.

Select a healthcare program within your practice and consider the design and implementation of this program.

Reflect on advocacy efforts and the role of the nurse in relation to healthcare program design and implementation.

The Assignment: (2–4 pages)

In a 2- to 4-page paper, create an interview transcript of your responses to the following interview questions:

Tell us about a healthcare program, within your practice. What are the costs and projected outcomes of this program?

Who is your target population?

What is the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of this healthcare program? Can you provide examples?

What is your role as an advocate for your target population for this healthcare program? Do you have input into design decisions? How else do you impact design?

What is the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation? How does this role vary between design and implementation of healthcare programs? Can you provide examples?

Who are the members of a healthcare team that you believe are most needed to implement a program? Can you explain why?

By Day 7 of Week 8

Submit
 your interview transcript.

submission information

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Rubric

NURS_6050_Module04_Week08_Assignment_Rubric

NURS_6050_Module04_Week08_Assignment_Rubric

Criteria

Ratings

Pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Program DesignIn a 2- to 4-page paper, create an interview transcript of your responses to the following interview questions.·   Tell us about a healthcare program within your practice. What are the costs and projected outcomes of this program?·   Who is your target population?·   What is the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of this healthcare program? Can you provide examples?·   What is your role as an advocate for your target population for this healthcare program? Do you have input into design decisions? How else do you impact design?

45
 
to >
40.0
 pts
Excellent
Response provides a clear and complete summary of the healthcare program, including an accurate and detailed description of the costs and projected outcomes of the program. …Response provides a clear and accurate description that fully describes the target population. …Response provides a clear and accurate explanation of the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of the program, including specific examples. …Response provides an accurate and detailed description of the role of the nurse advocate for the target population for the healthcare program selected. …Response provides an accurate and detailed explanation of how the advocate’s role influences design decisions as well as fully explaining impacts to program design.

40
 
to >
35.0
 pts
Good
Response provides a summary of the healthcare program, including a description of the costs and project outcomes of the program. …Response provides an accurate description of the target population. …Response provides an accurate explanation of the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of the program, including some examples. …Response provides an accurate description of the role of the nurse advocate for the target population for the healthcare program selected. …Response provides an accurate explanation of how the advocate’s role influences design decisions and somewhat explains impacts to program design.

35
 
to >
31.0
 pts
Fair
Response provides a summary of the healthcare program that is vague or incomplete or does not include costs or projected outcomes of the program. …Description of the target population is vague or inaccurate. …Explanation of the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of the program is vague, inaccurate, or does not include specific examples. …Description of the role of the nurse advocate for the target population for the healthcare program selected is vague or inaccurate. …Explanation of how the advocate’s role influences design decisions and impacts to program design is vague or inaccurate.

31
 
to >
0
 pts
Poor
Response provides a summary of the healthcare program that is vague and inaccurate, does not include costs or projected outcomes of the program, or is missing. …Description of the target population is vague and inaccurate or is missing. …Explanation of the role of the nurse in providing input for the design of the program, and specific examples is vague and inaccurate, or is missing. …Description of the role of the nurse advocate for the target population for the healthcare program selected is vague and inaccurate or is missing. …Explanation of how the advocate’s role influences design decisions and impacts to program design is vague and inaccurate, or is missing.

45
 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Program Implementation·  What is the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation?How does this role vary between design and implantation of healthcare programs? Can you provide examples?·  Who are the members of a healthcare team that you believe are most needed to implement a program? Can you explain why you think this?

40
 
to >
35.0
 pts
Excellent
Response provides a clear, accurate, and complete explanation of the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation. …Response provides an accurate and detailed explanation of how the role of the nurse is different between design and implementation of healthcare programs, including specific examples. …Response provides an accurate and detailed description of the members of a healthcare team needed to implement the program selected.

35
 
to >
31.0
 pts
Good
Response provides an accurate explanation of the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation. …Response provides an accurate explanation of how the role of the nurse is different between design and implementation of healthcare programs and may include some specific examples. …Response provides and accurate description of the members of a healthcare team needed to implement the program selected.

31
 
to >
27.0
 pts
Fair
Explanation of the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation is vague, inaccurate, and/or incomplete. …Explanation of how the role of the nurse is different between design and implementation of healthcare programs is vague or inaccurate and/or does not include specific examples. …Description of the members of a healthcare team needed to implement the program selected is inaccurate or incomplete.

27
 
to >
0
 pts
Poor
Explanation of the role of the nurse in healthcare program implementation is vague and inaccurate or is missing. …Explanation of how the role of the nurse is different between design and implementation of healthcare programs is vague and inaccurate or is missing. …Description of the members of a healthcare team needed to implement the program selected is vague and inaccurate, incomplete, or is missing.

40
 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Written Expression and Formatting – Paragraph Development and Organization: Paragraphs make clear points that support well developed ideas, low logically, and demonstrate continuity of ideas.Sentences are carefully focused– neither long and rambling nor short and lacking substance. A clear and comprehensive purpose statement and introduction is provided which delineates all required criteria.

5
 
to >
4.0
 pts
Excellent
Paragraphs and sentences follow writing standards for flow, continuity, and clarity. …A clear and comprehensive purpose statement, introduction, and conclusion is provided which delineates all required criteria.

4
 
to >
3.0
 pts
Good
Paragraphs and sentences follow writing standards for flow, continuity, and clarity 80% of the time. …Purpose, introduction, and conclusion of the assignment is stated, yet is brief and not descriptive.

3
 
to >
2.0
 pts
Fair
Paragraphs and sentences follow writing standards for flow, continuity, and clarity 60%- 79% of the time. …Purpose, introduction, and conclusion of the assignment is vague or off topic.

2
 
to >
0
 pts
Poor
Paragraphs and sentences follow writing standards for flow, continuity, and clarity < 60% of the time. …Purpose, introduction, and conclusion of the assignment is incomplete or missing. 5  pts This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Written Expression and Formatting – English Writing Standards: Correct grammar, mechanics, and proper punctuation Advocating for the Nursing Role in Program Design and Implementation 5   to >
4.0
 pts
Excellent
Uses correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation with no errors.

4
 
to >
3.0
 pts
Good
Contains a few (1-2) grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.

3
 
to >
2.0
 pts
Fair
Contains several (3-4) grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.

2
 
to >
0
 pts
Poor
Contains many (≥5) grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors that interfere with the reader’s understanding.

5
 pts

This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome
Written Expression and Formatting:The paper follows correct APA format for title page, font, spacing, margins, indentations, parenthetical/in-text citations, and reference list (if sources are cited).

5
 
to >
4.0
 pts
Excellent
Uses correct APA format with no errors.

4
 
to >
3.0
 pts
Good
Contains a few (1-2) APA format errors.

3
 
to >
2.0
 pts
Fair
Contains several (3-4) APA format errors.

2
 
to >
0
 pts
Poor
Contains many (≥5) APA format errors.

5
 pts

Total Points: 
100