Pressure Ulcer Prevention and treatment in inpatient rehabilitation
Write a 500-750 word about pressure ulcer prevention and treatment in inpatient rehabilitation. Make sure to include the following:
- The problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need that will be the focus of the project
- The setting or context in which the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need can be observed.
- A description providing a high level of detail regarding the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need.
- Impact of the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need on the work environment, the quality of care provided by staff, and patient outcomes.
- Significance of the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need and its implications to nursing.
- A proposed solution to the identified project topic
You are required to retrieve and assess a minimum of 8 peer-reviewed articles. Plan your time accordingly to complete this assignment.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide. An abstract is not required
The problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need that will be the focus of the project
Pressure ulcers have been identified as one of the leading causes of morbidity in in-patients as well as a contributor to poor health outcomes and consequent high increase in costs of healthcare (Jaul et al., 2018). Pressure ulcers are classified among the leading causes of medical-related errors. However, with appropriate care and interventions, nurses can avoid pressure ulcers and the resultant deteriorating effects on the patient and additional costs to a healthcare facility.
The setting or context in which the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need can be observed.
Nurses working in healthcare facilities located in rural settings face a unique challenge as regards maintaining competency (Buerhaus et al., 2017). This is more so when these nurses face complications that are uncommon such as the treatment and prevention of pressure ulcers. Educational programs for nurses can improve their decision making processes. However, the programs need to be designed carefully and successfully implemented if sustained changes in practices are to be achieved as well as improved patient outcomes are to be realized (Stiggelbout et al., 2015).
A description providing a high level of detail regarding the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need
Persons charged with nurse education in rural areas are required to educate nurses in a way that empowers them to offer care that is competent and knowledgeable including in lower frequency situations of patient care. Nurses in different competency levels have different prioritization of patient care (Meretoja et al., 2015). Beginner nurses have linear thinking while nurses that are more competent are capable of utilizing approaches that are more complex when prioritizing care to patients. Hence, understanding the needs of these categories of nurses helps in addressing complex care issues. The professional self-confidence and personal self-concept of nurses are related directly to the competency level of a nurse (Orta et al., 2016). Self-confidence is a necessary component of competence. Nurses with high levels of self-confidence also exhibit increased engagement and interest in care and management of patients, lifelong learning, as well as in addressing quality standards.
Nurses working in rural settings may be impeded by few resources in the quest to access continuous education necessary for achieving clinical competency (Hendrickx &Winters, 2017). One of the main concerns regarding rural setting nurses is access to educational opportunities. Additionally, when evidence-based information is used in the continuing education programs, it increases the potential for rural setting nurses to attend as well as value the programs (Kalb et al., 2011)
Impact of the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need on the work environment, the quality of care provided by staff, and patient outcomes
Prevention programs for pressure ulcers comprise of diverse components such as skin assessment, use of support surfaces and preventive measures, education and training, and assessment of risk (Mallah, Nassar, & Badr, 2015). Prevention programs for PU including nurse education have shown significant results as pertaining to the reduction in prevalence as well as a reduction in the time it takes to treat PU. When nurses’ knowledge improves, it results in enhanced patient outcomes such as a reduction in human suffering, reduction in pain, and a reduction in the time spent in hospitals (Dillie & Mengistu, 2015).
Significance of the problem, issue, suggestion, initiative, or educational need and its implications to nursing
Studies have shown that PU treatment and prevention can be enhanced through nurse’s knowledge, intentions, attitudes, and practices towards the healthcare concern, the years of experience, as well as the gender of nurse play a significant role in relation to the intentions, attitudes, practices, and knowledge of nurses on PU treatment and prevention (Dillie & Mengistu, 2015). Thus an education program that targets nurses of all genders and various levels of experience is a powerful tool for improving their understanding. Education programs can assist nurses to improve on the nursing care quality.
A proposed solution to the identified project topic
Rural nurses would benefit from an education program on PU treatment and prevention. A multi-faceted educational intervention will be designed. The project will require an instrument to be crafted that will measure the nurse’s knowledge on pressure ulcers and permission sought from relevant ethical boards to utilize the said instrument. The PICO model will be used where a multi-faceted, evidence-based educational intervention that is linked to treatment and prevention of pressure ulcers, in comparison to absence of formal education will result in enhancing the confidence and knowledge of rural setting nurses in caring for patients that have pressure ulcers or are at risk of acquiring PUs. The purpose of the project will be to assess the impact that an education intervention that is multi-faceted would have on the competency and knowledge of nurses working in rural settings, in relation to PU treatment and prevention. The goal of the project t will be to measure the multifaceted educational intervention’s efficacy in aiding rural setting nurses to not only achieve but also maintain the confidence and knowledge that is related to the treatment and prevention of PUs.
References
Buerhaus, P. I., Skinner, L. E., Auerbach, D. I., & Staiger, D. O. (2017). Four challenges facing the nursing workforce in the United States. Journal of Nursing Regulation, 8(2), 40-46.
Dilie, A., & Mengistu, D. (2015). Assessment of nurses’ knowledge, attitude, and perceived barriers to expressed pressure ulcer prevention practice in Addis Ababa government hospitals, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2015. Advances in Nursing, 2015.
Hendrickx, L., & Winters, C. (2017). Access to continuing education for critical care nurses in rural or remote settings. Critical care nurse, 37(2), 66-71.
Jaul, E., Barron, J., Rosenzweig, J. P., & Menczel, J. (2018). An overview of co-morbidities and the development of pressure ulcers among older adults. BMC geriatrics, 18(1), 1-11.
Kalb, K. A., O’Conner-Von, S. K., Brockway, C., Rierson, C. L., & Sendelbach, S. (2015). Evidence-based teaching practice in nursing education: Faculty perspectives and practices. Nursing education perspectives, 36(4), 212-219.
Mallah, Z., Nassar, N., & Badr, L. K. (2015). The effectiveness of a pressure ulcer intervention program on the prevalence of hospital acquired pressure ulcers: controlled before and after study. Applied Nursing Research, 28(2), 106-113.
Meretoja, R., Numminen, O., Isoaho, H., & Leino‐Kilpi, H. (2015). Nurse competence between three generational nurse cohorts: A cross‐sectional study. International journal of nursing practice, 21(4), 350-358.
Orta, R., Messmer, P. R., Valdes, G. R., Turkel, M., Fields, S. D., & Wei, C. C. (2016). Knowledge and competency of nursing faculty regarding evidence-based practice. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 47(9), 409-419.
Stiggelbout, A. M., Pieterse, A. H., & De Haes, J. C. (2015). Shared decision making: concepts, evidence, and practice. Patient education and counseling, 98(10), 1172-1179.
