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Essay On Delegation In Nursing

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Complexities of Delegation by the Registered Nurse Rebecca Rynders College of Southern Maryland Complexities of Delegation by the Registered Nurse Among the professional skills that a registered nurse (RN) must possess; the skill of delegation is vital. Both the nursing shortage and the need for more cost effective care has resulted in the use of more unlicensed staff and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) in the healthcare setting. This increase has led to the need for the RN to possess delegation skills. This necessity then leads to a requirement of definition and regulation of the delegation that occurs in order to keep it safe and effective. The guidelines are set forth by the American Nursing Association [ANA] (2006) and the National Council of State Boards of Nursing [NCSBN] (2006) in a Joint Statement on Delegation. The statement is one combined from papers adopted by the two organizations with recommendations on how delegation may be performed in an effective and safe manner. The paper also states the importance of referring to a state’s own Nurse Practice Act to establish legal parameters (ANA and NCSBN, 2006, Policy Considerations section). In order to fully understand the complex nature of delegation by the RN, this paper will explore the Joint Statement on Delegation (ANA and NCSBN, 2006), the Maryland State Nurse Practice Act, scholarly articles published on the subject of nursing delegation, and the text Contemporary Nursing: Issues in Trends and Management

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