Informatics and Nursing Sensitive Quality Indicators on Pressure Ulcers
The National Database of nursing Sensitive Quality Indicators (NDNQI) is a leading government agency which functions as a program designed to monitor and evaluate strategies to improve the general quality of healthcare services in the United States. It functions as a subset of the American Nurses Association (ANA) and is typically tasked with maintaining a comprehensive database of relevant quality improvement data. The NDNQI is directly involved in the collection and evaluation of relevant nursing data by relying solely on sensitive nursing indicators designed to identify and improve clinical practice (Krau, 2016). Today, this standardized approach is invaluable since it allows healthcare organizations to compare individual performance with national benchmarks while aiming for future success. The sensitive quality indicators used in nursing are metrics that often indicate the quality of nursing care provided by a given healthcare organization. They may include the rate of pressure ulcer cases among immobile patients, patient falls, nursing turnover rates, and the frequency of adverse events directly attributed to medication errors. For this particular tutorial, I settled on pressure ulcers as the most appropriate metric to use when assessing the quality of healthcare services provided within any given healthcare organization.
Read also National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators, Patient Quality and Patient Safety
The current prevalence of pressure ulcers remains serious public health challenge due to its frequency and impact on healthcare quality and patient outcomes. According to Jones (2016), pressure ulcers are a leading cause of non-fatal injuries and injury related deaths in the United States for persons aged 65 and older, hence the importance of assessing risk and the provision of proper training among clinical staff. Pressure ulcers result in debilitating injuries, which eventually results in longer hospital stays among those affected and a significant increase in the overall cost of care. Yet, it is crucial to also note that nurses are among the most important healthcare professionals available today, particularly due to their role in preventing adverse medical events such as pressure ulcers. They are often tasked with monitoring patient’s daily progress during treatment and also strive to improve patient outcomes through the integration of network error interventions.
Read also How Hospital Data on Specific Nursing-Sensitive Indicators Could Advance Quality Patient Care
This may play a major role in reducing cases of pressure ulcers today through the active monitoring of admitted persons and the implementation of evidence-based practice (EBP) solutions to improve patient outcomes. They may also be tasked with the formal identification and integration of feasible individualized interventions while ensuring patient education is routine. Nurses who acknowledge the importance of the full implementation of pressure ulcer prevention strategies can, therefore, go a long way in providing a high-quality clinical environment where patient’s safety can be guaranteed. A significant reduction in the rate of pressure ulcers within a healthcare organization decreases the need for continuity of care and may also translate in high nursing turnover rates.
Read also Application of Watson’s Theory of Caring in Prevention of Pressure Ulcers
The Collection and Distribution of Quality Indicator Data
At present, the collection, evaluation, and dissemination of high-quality indicator data is a major element of healthcare efforts designed with the primary aim of improving healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. Data on cases of pressure ulcers among patients now plays a leading role in the development of feasible strategies for mitigating risk by identifying opportunities for quality improvement guided by EBP interventions. The monitoring and collection of relevant data on pressure ulcers should always be conducted in an organization with the presence of a high-quality healthcare system capable of handling accurate reporting and recording. Clinical staff can either rely on manual or electronic methods for the actual collection, distribution, and reporting of data on pressure ulcers. While the manual method relies on data transcribed from patient’s medical records, the electronic method involves the cataloging of data in a centralized database.
Read also Infection Control Practice in Management of Pressure Ulcer
The latter is often preferred since it saves time, minimizes manual transcription errors, and can be easily integrated with an automated fall detection system. Healthcare organizations which choose to rely on the electronic data collection method are also highly likely to benefit from a high likelihood of accuracy in data collection and the fidelity fall patterns identified. It is also essential to also consider data entry challenges, the sharing and aggregation of data with nursing staff, and the role of nurses in supporting the accuracy of reporting and the recording of high-quality data. Although the biometric data scanning system has been hailed as an important element of electronic data collection, it is often linked with a high workload volume within organizations where it is preferred (Gallagher & Rowell, 2017).
The data collection process may also be limited by the actual amount of resources available for use within the organization and data quality impacted directly by insufficient staff training. Poor data quality may result in a scenario where nurses fail to accurately report cases of pressure ulcers due to a limited understanding of the actual significance of this data and fear of retaliation by respective supervisors. Moreover, the sharing of results is central to quality improvement which is particularly why this should be fostered as part of the organizational culture. The actual sharing of results by an organization can be conducted through e-mail correspondence, regular intra- and interdepartmental meetings, and through online dashboards.
On the other hand, the dissemination of aggregate data can be done through mediums such as tables, charts, and elaborate graphs. This will aid clinical staff across different departments, wards, and units to accurately evaluate the data available on pressure ulcers while also identifying trends likely to optimize the integration of applicable prevention strategies (Theisler, 2022). Moreover, nurses also play a critical role in supporting accurate reporting and the logging of high-quality resource. They accomplish this through the proper application of electronic reporting systems while also ensuring that the bar-code scanning technology is deployed appropriately during electronic reporting.
Get Your Custom Paper From Professional Writers. 100% Plagiarism Free, No AI Generated Content and Good Grade Guarantee. We Have Experts In All Subjects.
Place Your Order Now