Accountability of Nurses

Accountability means:” being accountable for one’s own action”. The American Nursing Association (ANA) states in its code that the nurse will assume accountability for individual nursing judgments and actions. Professional nurses are accountable in several areas including accountability to the public, client, profession, employer, and self (Hood, 2010, p. 307). All professional nurses have the responsibility to work within their scope of practice to provide the best possible care to patients. Nurses’ should have a thorough knowledge about their accountability in specific areas of practice. The level of responsibility and accountability depends on professional levels. A nursing supervisor has more responsibility than a charge- nurse. A

For nurses extending their role to include prescribing there is much to consider. Revelay (1999) states that, accountability involves an individual giving an account of their actions with the rationale and explanation given for these actions. The decisions regarding boundaries of practice are firmly placed in the hands of the individual practitioner (Carlisle 1992). Accountability means being able to justify any actions and accepting responsibility for them, and is an integral part of nursing practice (Rowe 2000) The NMC Code of Professional Conduct (2004) states that a nurse is personally accountable for her practice, has a duty of care to patients and must work within the laws of the country.

Accountability is defined by department of defense as the obligation imposed by a law or lawful order or regulation on an officer or other person for keeping an accurate record of government property, documents or funds. The numerical end product of personnel accountability process reflects the combat power of a unit.

Accountability is also a personal issue. Personal accountability is the act of taking responsibility for your actions in the workplace or other situations. Rather than directing blame on others the individual should seek to understand their own contribution towards the situation and how they could make the situation better. As most people do not interpret situations the same way you must learn to recognize the different communication styles and behaviors of others. Although we are not accountable for what happens beyond our control we can control how we respond to it. Our behavior and attitude defines who we are and our character. We have to learn from our mistakes and take responsibility for what happens and how we choose to handle the situation. We can sit back and let things happen as

Responsibility is defined as the "reliability, dependability, and the obligation to accomplish work”, responsibility also includes each person's obligation to perform at an acceptable level, the level that the person has been educated (Kelly-Heidenthal, 2003, p. 268). Accountability is defined as, "being responsible and liable for actions or failure of actions of oneself or others in the context of delegation" (NCSBN, 2009). This is in reference to the nurse's legal liability for the actions taken and patient outcomes. Accountability and responsibility are different, as responsibility belongs to the person doing the task and accountability belongs to the person who assigned the task. The nurse is both accountable for the

Accountability is not an abstract concept. It is actually extremely simple. Accountability means saying what you mean, meaning what you say, and doing what you say you 're

Accountability: As an endorsed enrolled nurse my responsibility is to be accountable for my actions and know the legal and ethical requirements and ramification of care for my patients. It’s my own professional practise to accept accountability and responsibility for my own actions and know my own level of competence and accept delegation from an RN or others in the health care team but also choosing whether or not I feel competent and do so these tasks by demonstrating and recognising my own level of competence and providing safe and practical care for patients

Truth-telling is an important issue within the nurse-patient relationship. Nurses make decisions on a daily basis regarding what information to tell patients. The specific issue in question is whether a nurse should abide by the Code of Ethics for Nurses by revealing the truth to the patient or refrain from telling the truth to the patient because they are respecting the wishes of the patient’s family. Nurses and health care professionals should always tell the truth to their patients unless the patient forgoes their rights to autonomy or cannot think for themselves. By providing the patient with the truth, they allow the patient to come to terms with their conditions and give them the options for further treatment.

Evidence based practice is more likely to take hold in an environment that is supportive and understanding that change although may be necessary is typically difficult to implement without some resistance. Evidence based practices are crucial in improving patient outcomes and having healthier patients at discharge. This in turn can reduce re-hospitalizations, allow for better participation in rehab if needed and promote better disease self management along with cost savings at the hospital. In order to provide this, the floor nurses need to be educated on the new process and fully understand why it is better then how it was previously being done. Resources should be readily available be it extra staff, supplies or constant and continuous education

The importance of accountability, the definition of accountability is an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s action. Accountability plays a critical role in many facets of life. Acknowledging and taking responsibility for actions and decisions directly affects the health and success of individuals, households, communities, businesses, and governments. Such a concept is especially important in a large, complex organization like the United States Army. America’s premier land-based combat force for over 240 years, the U.S. Army has taken part and succeeded in numerous crises, conflicts, and wars across the globe. These many triumphs resulted from millions of men and women responsibly carrying out their duties and meeting expectations. As an institution in which operations, projects, and, above all, lives depend on people staying committed and answering for their actions, the U.S. Army illustrates the incredible significance of accountability.

Errors pervade in our lives whether it is our home, in our workplace, or in our society. The effects of healthcare errors have impacted all our lives either directly or indirectly. Patient safety and quality care are at the core of healthcare system which strongly depends upon nurses. “To achieve goals in patient safety and quality, thereby improve healthcare, nurses must assume the leadership role. Nurses need to ensure that they and other healthcare providers center healthcare on patients and their families. Even though the quality and safety of healthcare is heavily influenced by the complex nature

Natalie, Thank you for your post. You made some valid points regarding how evidence based practice can lead to better outcomes for both patients and healthcare providers. I'm an orthopedic nurse and can relate with using evidence based practice in the prevention of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in patients after joint surgery. Besides traumatic accidents, joint replacement surgeries pose a serious risk for patients when it comes to DVT. According to Kehl-Pruett (2006), by assessing the general risk factors for DVT in hospital patients we can implement DVT prevention programs. Some of the risk factors are as follows: age, obesity, smoking, previous history of DVT, acute medical illness, central venous catheters, surgery, orthopedic or abdominal,

The evaluation for DVT in the left leg is blood tests and an immediate Doppler venous ultrasound (US). The blood tests ordered are BMP, CBC, D-dimer and coagulation studies. The CBC is important to determine if an infectious process is occurring. The BMP is important for electrolyte evaluation and the coagulation studies reveal coagulopathies.

Accountability refers to answering for one’s self, the liability, the blame as well as accounts given. In the nursing profession accountability is stated in the code of ethics explaining what nurses are entitled to and the consequences of their actions. There are many people to whom nurses are accountable to such as clients for their care, safety, advocate, medications, trust, teaching, and a good listener. The nurse has special duties to advocate for her clients legal rights, privacy protection and the right to choose whether or not to participate in medical research. For you to be an advocate you must meet all qualifications in state regulations prior to participating. You are also accountable

If the ultrasound has findings, or if there are clinical symptoms that suggest proximal disease (iliocaval), then an x-ray venogram of the pelvis may be performed. However, it is not the method of choice. This is beneficial though because compared to CT, it uses a significant less amount of radiation. It still uses radiation, but not as much. The lowest rating in the rankings is x-ray venography of the lower extremity. This exam is generally used in conjunction with thrombolysis. Thrombolysis is a treatment to dissolve dangerous clots in the blood vessels to improve blood flow and prevent damage to the tissues and organs. It may involve the injection of clot-busting drugs through an intravenous line or through a long catheter that delivers drugs directly to the site of the blockage. These types of exams are not as common as the use of an MRI or CT machine may be because of the severity of a