. Discuss the functional differences between the FDA and the Centre for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Both the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) and CMS (Centre for the Medicare and Medicare Services) are regulatory bodies that improve the delivery of value in healthcare services. The two bodies perform their regulatory functions at different aspects of the healthcare system. On the one hand, the FDA is in charge of marketing and consuming medical products and equipment. It approves or disapproves of devices and drugs based on effectiveness and safety evidence. This statutory mandate ensures the patients’ safety and the efficiency of healthcare services, pharmaceutical products, and medical devices (What does FDA Regulate, n.d.). On the other hand, CMS takes care of the reimbursement for healthcare services and products by the two large healthcare programs in the United States, Medicaid, and Medicare (About CMS, n.d.). It determines the coverage based on the necessity of the products and services in healthcare delivery.
Discuss how the two regulatory agencies influence your role as a patient advocate
The FDA affects my nursing practice in that it ensures that the medications I administer to the patients, and the medical devices used are safe for patient use. As stated by the FDA statutory, all vaccines and drugs must be subjected to thorough clinical trials to determine their safety and effectiveness. Such trials increase my confidence when administering the medications, as I am convinced they are safe. The CMS focuses a lot on patient safety and satisfaction with the quality of healthcare services offered. In our role as healthcare professionals, patients are at the heart of our practice.
- Describe your role as a patient advocate in promoting safety when a patient has requested to use an alternative therapy
Acting as patients’ advocates, nurses should help patients to make informed decisions regarding their health. This is because they are better informed about the benefits and risks of various healthcare options than the patients. Ensuring the patient makes the right decision for their health is very important. The nurse (s) in-charge should do research and provide the necessary information and resources to allow the patient to make an informed decision. The information should include certified FDA resources as they are proof of safety.
- Discuss the purposes of the Nurse Practice Act in your state and its impact on your professional practice
The Nurse Practice Act (NPA) in my state is a legislative body regulating nursing practice in the state. It also enforces the law through assigned bodies to maintain equilibrium between nurses’ rights and their core responsibility in protecting citizens’ health and safety in that particular state. It contains all the necessary information that a registered nurse needs to know for nursing’s effective practice. It clearly outlines the scope of practice in the nursing profession to ensure that the nurse does not, at any point, step out of their professional boundaries. The NPA also provides competency-based practice by setting up regulations of care and consequences of any case of incompetency (Nurse Practice Act, n.d.).
- Discuss the scope of practice for an RN In your state
As clearly defined in the ARS 32-1601(13), a qualified nurse practicing in the nursing profession has the following roles. First, he or she is responsible for diagnosing and appropriately treating any health state as a result of a response to potential or actual health threats in all human beings. Besides, one is responsible for guiding a person or a group of individuals towards optimizing their health care. This is to be done through effective care strategies for the evaluation and implementation of appropriate care plans. An RN is also obligated with careful patient assessment, diagnosis, establishing important healthcare goals for the individual and beginning the necessary nursing intervention for optimal care. He or she can also delegate duties of care to an equally competent individual. One is furthermore obligated to teach nursing skills and knowledge and supervision of nursing care by junior colleagues. The RN must also consult and coordinate care with other healthcare professionals in the patients’ best interests. The RN also has the responsibility of improving their knowledge and skills through necessary training and education as recommended by the professional nursing boards (What is in the Legal Scope of RN and LPN Practice, n.d.).
- Discuss how your state defines delegation for the RN
Delegation of duties is an official opinion in the nursing profession but not a law. It involves offering an advisory opinion to a colleague. The responsibility to delegate is within the nursing practice scope by an RN, as stated under the Nurse Practice Act. According to the State Board of Nursing, tasks can be delegated to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP), licensed assistive personnel (LAP) and a licensed nursing assistant (LNA). The delegation can only be done after considering several factors such as cultural competence, quality of training, policies in the specific healthcare facilities, and the individual’s experience (What is in the Legal Scope of RN and LPN Practice., n.d.). The delegating person is still accountable for the tasks.
- Apply each of the following roles to your professional practice:
- A scientist
Nurses act as primary investigators asking patients questions and providing the necessary answers. Through this, they can work closely with the patients throughout the illness journey. They also consult their professional colleagues when trying to come up with solutions for the patients’ interests. They are also obligated to use evidence-based practice guidelines in their patient’s care. Due to this responsibility, they must be at per with the current medical issues and their impact to ensure optimal patient care (Nursing Conceptual Model-BSN., n.d.).
- A detective
Following accurate diagnosis and administration of nursing intervention, a nurse is supposed to monitor the patients for the treatment plan’s effectiveness. Using scientific knowledge, the nurse is expected to bridge the gap between medical researches in actual nursing practice. An unexpected impact on the patient, on symptomatology or lab findings, should be studied and the necessary modification made as soon as possible (Nursing Conceptual Model-BSN., n.d.).
- A manager of the healing environment
The nurse has a critical role in creating a conducive environment for the patients’ sake. This can be done by fostering positive attitudes while eliminating any negative feelings. The nurse should also coordinate the healthcare team to reduce stress and anxiety on both the patients and the healthcare providers. The offered to the patient should be compassionate, which is vital for overall psychological wellbeing (Woolley et al, 2012). Effective communication is also essential to avoid any forms of misunderstanding that may derail value delivery.
- Identify two provisions from the ANA Code of Ethics
Provision 1 – The nurse practices with compassion and respect for every person’s inherent dignity, worth, and personal attributes without prejudice.
Provision 2 – The nurse’s primary commitment is to the patient, whether an individual, family, group, community or population.
- Analyze how the provisions identified in part G influence your professional nursing practice
As a nurse, I must be aware of my clients’ different attitudes, beliefs, and values from different cultural, nationalities, and ethnic backgrounds. This knowledge and understanding must be put into consideration throughout the therapeutic relationship. Respect increases the patients’ confidence in the care offered. I also provide equal quality of care regardless of the patient’s origin without any form of discrimination. I also make it my responsibility to ensure that the patients know their rights and privileges in the search for healthcare services (American Nurses Association, 2010).
The second provision outlines my crucial role in the advocacy for patient’s needs and care. Being the first contact with the patients and their relatives, I must address all their questions satisfactorily. In most cases, patients do not understand the guidelines as given by various insurance companies. I have to intervene as a nurse to ensure that the patients go for the best alternatives using informed decision making (American Nurses Association, 2010). In such instances, nurses as bearers of health information also prove that the patients are chronically ill, requiring coverage.
- Describe a nursing error that may occur in a clinical practice
Due to a nurse’s religious belief, one may be tempted to discriminate against homosexual couples. Such discrimination has led to the inaccessibility of services by members of the LGBTQ community. Most healthcare professionals are also less informed on the specific health problems that affect members of this community. For instance, men who have sex with men are a high-risk group for HIV but are denied care in most healthcare facilities.
- Explain how the ANA provisions identified in part G can be applied to the error discussed in part G2
According to the nurse’s code of ethics provision 1, all patients must be treated equally regardless of their descent. The provision demands that no prejudice is used against any persons irrespective of the contributory factors to their problems. The management plan should be personalized for each patient while considering the social, cultural and economic factors in their individual lives. According to the second provision, a nurse working in an environment associated with discriminatory practice should speak up for their patients. The nurse’s role includes advocacy for the patients’ rights and freedom, especially the minority groups who cannot stand up for themselves.
- Identify your leadership qualities or traits that represent excellence in nursing.
Effective communication, teamwork, emotional intelligence and dedication to excellence (Cherry, & Jacob, 2017).
- Discuss the significance of the four leadership qualities identified in part H in the nurses’ role as each of the following:
- A leader at the bedside
Healthcare is a delicate discipline that requires concentration on details for excellence. This ensures that preventable complications are well taken care of. It also reduces the cases of misdiagnosis, which may lead to life-threatening errors. Being good at teamwork ensures that patients are optimally satisfied. It also lowers the level of stress experienced that the patients are likely to encounter in healthcare settings. As a leader, team building also promotes teamwork among your followers, reduces cases of burnout, and hence low incidences of nursing errors. Effective communication ensures that the instructions given concerning patient care are followed to the latter. At the bedside, emotional intelligence allows one to compose themselves to break any bad news that the patient may need to hear.
- Within a nursing team or interdisciplinary team
Teamwork is at the heart of the medical practice. No single person or professional can achieve optimal patient care without the help of others. Working as a team improves the sense of accountability among the team members. To effectively work as a team, communication is critical. Effective communication includes the ability to pass a message as well as listen actively. Within a group, emotional intelligence relieves social tension as people can understand each other despite the differences. Lastly, striving for excellence as part of a team enables the other team members to value you as an asset that is valuable in delivering quality healthcare services.
2.Identify how your work environment impacts the following:
My current work environment fosters leadership skills as the team leader delegates duties and allows me to work with minimal supervision. Through this, I can perform tasks without the need for direct control. Also, being allowed to actively participate in patients’ management improved my critical thinking skills in decision-making. The facility also holds annual conferences through which the nurses are trained in advanced nursing skills. Interaction with fellow nurses also provides an opportunity for them to learn from each other.