Florence Nightingale Environmental Theory
Florence Nightingale Environmental Theory
Florence Nightingale environmental theory is applicable in prevention of CLABSIs. In the environment, patient and health have relationship. The environment can affect a patient’s health and recovery. A poor environment affects patient health and makes the patient prone to diseases. Hospitals having poor sanitation, uneducated and qualified workers tend to have high incidences of CLABSIs. In addition, hospitals having professionals with minimal training affect patients’ health by influencing patent safety and quality of care. In addition, having professionals unreliable in meeting patients’ needs affects patient health and increases the risk of having CLABSIs. Implementing the central line maintenance protocol bundle will improve patients environment and hence health. The central line maintenance protocol bundle encourages hand hygiene, disinfection of the patient’s skin with Chlorhexidine and disinfection of the hospital environment. In addition, it encourages proper selection of catheter site and education of the staff on CLABSIs to prevent the infections (Friedman & Rhinehart, 2006).
Population targeted in the solution
The safety of the patients has remained a challenge in healthcare globally. Florence Nightingale environmental theory focuses on the physical aspect of the environment. These physical aspects include noise, cleanliness, diet, light, warmth, and ventilation. Proper nursing care can only be possible in a surrounding that is healthy. This can be met by involving various stakeholders in a health facility. The stakeholders who should be part of maintaining the environment appealing include the nurses, management, as well as the patients. All stakeholders should take part in making sure the health facility is in fantastic condition. The management is necessary for approval of any plan in the facility while others are necessary for implementing the laid down strategies. Involving these stakeholders in the care plan will enhance their safety and care will be efficient.
Obtaining approval and securing support from organization’s leadership and fellow staff
There ought to be a letter of support from the division involved patient safety. There will be contacting of designated representative in the necessary department division. This enable getting a letter that states that the division reviewed the project giving it a clean bill of health. This should show that the project has the best interest of the division. There will be administrators’ contacting for all the facilities and divisions taking part in the project to get their approval. The administrators will review the project and assess how fit it is for the facility. After the approval, there is submission of the documents to the overall management to enlighten them about the progress. The project agreement reviewing takes place and signed and dated copy given to the appropriate authorities.
Description of the current problem
Currently, patients face various issues while at the care facilities. These challenges are mostly environmental, and they include fresh air, cleanliness, environment, and communication. For patients to recover, they require fresh air. This problem comes in when rooms for patients stay closed. They should be opened to ensure that air circulation is adequate. The environment, which patients use, should be clean. Cleanliness prevents disease and helps patients to recover. It is a health hazard to keep on the bedside of the patient a full chamber pot; manure near buildings used by patients is also a health hazard. Sewers have also been let open in the streets, and this poses danger to patients, as well as healthy people. Patients’ bedding has also not been well kept in some health facilities. This creates a superior breeding ground for microorganisms which places the patients at danger of contacting other diseases. There is no regular changing of bedding and risk poses risks to patients. In some healthcare facilities, patients lack with attractive rooms with the appropriate lighting systems. Patients get confined to bed in the larger part of the day with have a similar view. This results to boredom to the patient which in turn will affect their rate of recovery. This boredom should be controlled by making the environment an appealing place. Communication to patients should be in a manner that adds morale to the patients. However, this is not the case to many patients. Patients face ignorant medical suggestions, false assurance, and suggestions that that affect the patients negatively.
Explanation of proposed solution
The physical aspect of the surrounding is extremely crucial for the recovery of patients. These physical aspects make up the environment, and they include noise, cleanliness, diet, light, and warmth. For an environment to be considered healthy, it should meet these requirements superior lighting, cleanliness, efficient drainage, and pure water. The architectural aspect of the hospital should ensure that there is proper ventilation for patients to get fresh air. Light has real and substantial effects to a human being’s body. The nursing intervention incorporates a direct sunlight exposure.Sanitation and cleanliness is paramount. A dirty environment is the source of infection to people. Therefore, there should be proper handling of secretions from the body, as well as sewage. Patients should bath frequently; nurses should also bath often and should have clean clothing. Hand washing should also be practices to avoid contacting microorganisms, which cause diseases.The environment for patients should be warm, and quiet. The diet for patients should be custom to ensure that the body gets the required food nutrients. The dietary intake of the patients should be monitored for them to avoid poor eating habits, which may harm their health further. The environment should get manipulation to fit the needs of the patient. These include fire exits, window opening and seasonal repositioning of the room. Patients under recovery get affected by unnecessary noise; therefore, there should be no unnecessary noise in the environment where patients reside.
Rationale for selecting proposed solution
Nursing is extremely crucial for the well being of every person. There should be implementation and rendering of effectual nursing care to all patients. In the environmental theory, the patient is the focus. Nurses have the mandate to perform the tasks required by patients and be in charge of the surroundings for quick recovery. Health entails wellbeing, and capability to use power a person has to the maximum. A body that is healthy can recover and go through the process of reparation. People get benefits from the environment around them. In the reparative process of a patient, preventing interruptions is extremely crucial. The reparative process can be fully ensured by letting the care givers understand what they offer to the clients. This can be attained by training the nurses. Nursing practice entails application of perseverance, observation and ingenuity in the practice. For patients to recover quickly there should be cooperation between them and the nurse.Diseases originated from organic materials from the environment and they prevent diseases. Nursing should have the commitment to the work of nursing. Nurses ought to be moral agents; they ought to be thinking and acting like nurses. There should be upholding of confidentiality principles, professional relations, and the poor should be cared for improving social condition and health.
Evidence from review of literature
A patient safety culture can enhance the reparative process significantly. Culture can be defined as the far reaching assumptions, norms, and values of an organization guiding the members’ interactions with the behaviors, customs and attitudes. The safety culture exists in the presence of focused organizational effort with commitment from various members including leaders, staff to keep patients free from hurting. All the involved parties feel obliged to keep patients safe together with their families. The health care personnel should feel free to express themselves in the event having care been compromised or in reporting of events which are adverse. The environment will be effective when the organizational performance goes up. There should be ensuring of individual and collective behavior for patient safety to be enhanced (Alligood, & Tomey, 2008).Senior leadership ought to establish safety as the priority of an organization. All leaders and staff should take part in the design, implementation and sustainability of the issues of safety. The environmental conduciveness can only be boosted if leaders set the right tone by stating of the environmental concerns as priority, giving support to approved behaviors and motivating staff to attain the safest care. They ought to lay down useful strategies like hand hygiene and use of precautions of isolation to control the situation (Balita, & Octaviano, 2008).
Description of logistics for implementation
Leaders in the entire organization should be engaged in support of enhancing healthcare environmental safety. They should help them increase the visibility and essence of preventing diseases. The senior executives should show commitment to the project leading to improved patient environment. Leaders need a compelling case that will underpin on the decrease in mortality, morbidity, as well as cost after avoiding infections. Leaders should have valid information. This will enhance their understanding regarding to what need to be done.Teamwork and collaboration will be highly useful as these will increase the chances of various stakeholders playing their role effectively. Information from different quotas will be thin as necessary for all the people in need of the information to get it and use it as appropriate. Training will be extremely crucial in this project. For nurses to be efficient, they should get training on implementation of the necessary procedures for to offer care in an environment that will improve the patients’ recovery rate.
Resources required for implementation.
For the project to be effective, various people ought to play a role. These roles would entail the use of resources from the institution. The finance department should approve the finances required to make the project successful. The trainers for nurses should get the right facilities to enable them to train efficiently. Technology will be of the essence in this project. This is because, in the architectural designs, the designers will have to use technology. In addition, technology will be necessary for ensuring that all the involved parties get in touch as necessary and come up with the right roadmap for implementing the different strategies. The ultimate goal would be ensuring that patients are safe and that the environment in which they live in ensures their quick reparation.
Reference
Alligood, M.R. & Tomey, A.M. (2008) Nursing theorist and their work 5th Ed. Missouri
Balita, C.E. & Octaviano, E.F. (2008) Theoretical foundations of nursing: The Philippine perspective p63-72, Philippines; Ultimate learning series
Friedman, M.M., & Rhinehart, E. (2006). Infection control in home care and hospice. Jones & Bartlett learning
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