Select a problem that you have experienced or identified within your workplace or in a health care setting Topic 3 DQ 2

Select a problem that you have experienced or identified within your workplace or in a health care setting Topic 3 DQ 2

Pressure ulcers in bedridden patients and frail older adults are a major problem identified at my workplace. They are associated with poor nursing care, such as if immobile patients are not adequately turned, positioned correctly, and provided good skincare or nutrition (Boyko et al., 2018). Pressure ulcers affect the organization at large since they reflect the quality of patient care provided to patients. High incidences of pressure ulcers indicate poor quality care, while a low incidence reflects high-quality care. Pressure ulcers result in prolonged hospital stay, reduced quality of life, and high healthcare costs (Boyko et al., 2018). Consequently, there is an urgent need to address this issue to improve patient outcomes, increase satisfaction with care, and lower healthcare costs.

The pressure ulcer problem can be addressed through a quality improvement (QI) initiative that seeks to establish the cause of the high incidence. A QI initiative can evaluate nursing care processes and improve these processes to increase the likelihood of attaining the desired patient outcomes and better meet patients’ needs (Gupta et al., 2020). The first step in addressing the problem would be to evaluate nursing care interventions provided to patients at risk of pressure ulcers, such as bedridden and old frail patients. The evaluation would help identify areas that need improvement in order to prevent pressure ulcers.

The second step would be to establish strategies that will improve nursing care of at-risk patients and specific interventions that will be implemented to prevent pressure ulcers in these patients. The interventions can include increasing the frequency of patient turning, integrating nutrition care in the care plan, and improving skincare practices (Gupta et al., 2020). The preventive strategies will be adopted and evaluated within three months to identify areas needing improvement.

References

Boyko, T. V., Longaker, M. T., & Yang, G. P. (2018). Review of the Current Management of Pressure Ulcers. Advances in wound care, 7(2), 57–67. https://doi.org/10.1089/wound.2016.0697

Gupta, P., Shiju, S., Chacko, G., Thomas, M., Abas, A., Savarimuthu, I., … & Andrews, W. (2020). A quality improvement programme to reduce hospital-acquired pressure injuries. BMJ Open Quality, 9(3), e000905. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjoq-2019-000905