It made me realise that whilst there a many, many great nurses, who do a fantastic job, often in very challenging situations, there are also nurses on the wards today who have lost sight of what nursing is all about: Nursing, Caring, and looking after people who for one reason or another are in hospitals/nursing homes/primary care situations and need to be "nursed".
I would like to try and bring about change so that all nurses are seen as caring and the profession regains the high esteem in which it was once held.
Please post your comments on this blog: positive suggestions are welcome, along with examples of where excellent care has been delivered (PLEASE DO NOT GIVE ANY PERSONAL DETAILS; this is a public blog).
Chloe Nightingale
Chloe, Change will need to be multifaceted and have those responsible for making the change need the power so it can be implemented.
ReplyDeleteLip service thrown at it in small doses will cause more harm that good. It needs a very complex and sustained approach with a motivted hospital to pilot the change. I would suggest a ward is made self sufficient with its own dedicated cleaner,admin,catering assistant that is managed by a Sister. These people are in place and not removed to other wards. The issues are not just about eating and drinking but cleanliness and time and the distraction of writing notes. A plan to remove the beauocrasy and put nurses back into hands on work. Some Nurses will clearly say they find the hands on easier than the notes. Maybe if they can feed there work into a IT literate admin they can put the notes down for the Nurse from a sheet the nurse has already written throughouther working day and then the Nurse reads it and signs it off??
More hands at meal time to give food and drink...more hands to allow patients to be toileted regularly.
I know most Nurses want this its getting the resources for them to be able to have it happen in practice.
Go back to basics and then build back up.
Imagine jenga ....Lets start again....