Effective Delegation : Necessary Skill For The 21st Century Nurse

not have control of delegation: “The RN may delegate components of care but does not

Nursing Delegation: A Professional Challenge George S. Diaz Chamberlain College of Nursing NR-103: Transition to the Nursing Profession September 20th 2017 Nursing Delegation: A Professional Challenge The purpose of this paper is to prove delegating effectively will provide positive patient outcome, but if done ineffectively can lead to errors resulting in patient harm or death. Nursing delegation brings upon a shared responsibility to the tasks at hand to those who can do the appropriate work.

In nursing, delegation helps in making use of the talent or skills of another person. One nurse transfers interventions which are under his/her practice roles to another to another member of the healthcare team who lacks such powers authorized under their scope of practice. Delegation can only take place if it is in patient’s best interest.

Delegation as defined by the State of Michigan Public Health Code as “…means an authorization granted by a licensee to a licensed or unlicensed individual to perform selected acts, tasks, or functions which fall within the scope of practice of the delegator and which are not within the scope of practice of the delegatee and which, in the absence of the authorization, would constitute illegal practice of a licensed profession” (RN Accountability For Delegation Decisions). What this states is that the RN has the legal right to delegate appropriate tasks to LPN/LVN and UAPs (unlicensed assistive personnel) or CENA’s. The importance of delegation of care is vital to the success of the patient’s outcome to leave the acute hospital setting. The RN must be agile in overseeing that the tasks assigned are done correctly and accurately due to the fact that they are ultimately responsible and accountable for that patient. In the acute hospital setting, the RN may delegate to the LPN/LVN

Providing care to clients is more complex than just providing care. It requires the use of the nursing process, knowledge in what to do with that process as well as being able to adapt and comply with the continuous changes in rules, regulations and standards of care in health care. If all of those factors are not enough, let us not forget about the changes in the evolving nursing workforce. Many factors will influence the ability to comply with all regulations and standards. As stated in the National Center for Health Workforce Analysis report from December 2014. Some factors include: “population growth, aging of the population, overall economic conditions, aging of the nursing workforce, and changes in health care reimbursement. Therefore, delegation should be used as a tool in helping the licensed nurse, as it plays a vital role in being able to provide appropriate nursing care to the highest

(2010) said delegation by RNs is a primary mechanism for ensuring that professional nursing standards of care reach the

Delegating is one of the most valuable leadership skills a charge nurse possesses.   Effective delegation skills are essential for proper patient care and safety. Delegation is defined as when a nursing professional entrusts the performance of a nursing task to someone who is qualified, competent, and able to perform the assigned task (Q1).  In order for the charge nurse to delegate effectively,  he or she must take into consideration the patient's needs as well as the capabilities of the nursing professional for whom he or she is delegating the task to. The American Nurses Association outlines The Five Rights of Delegation as a guideline for nursing professionals.  The first right is for the professional to determine if the task is one to

ABSTRACT: Delegation refers to the practice of a registered nurse assigning certain tasks and activities to other people while still maintaining responsibility for the actions of the others to whom responsibility has been delegated. The act of delegating assumes that the delegator has a certain amount of trust in the person to whom they delegate. Additionally, quality communication is paramount in maintaining superior patient care when delegating tasks to others. One signifigant obstacle to delegation is ensuring that the proper tasks are delegated to the appropriate individuals. The organizational structure and leadership

On the other hand, the nurse who is delegating must avoid these assignments for new, float or traveling nurses and for LVN/LPNs: New onset/sudden/acute, new admission, transfer, newly diagnosed, discharge, require education/teaching or unstable patients, such as: high risk of sudden respiratory failure, or requires frequent assessments and changes in therapy, like electrolyte imbalances (NCSBN, 1995). In other words, the Nursing activities that may not be delegated include:

Delegation can save money and time, help in building skills, and motivate people. Poor delegation, on the other hand, might cause frustration and confusion to all the involved parties.

Delegation is widely acknowledged to be an essential element of effective management (Yukl, G. 1994). Delegation is basically a process of assigning responsibility, sharing authority, and producing accountability in organizations. It is a managerial instrument that allows managers to nurture subordinates to capitalize the subordinate’s potential and ability to meet organizational goals and objectives. As a form of employee involvement in decision-making, delegation describes a category of leader behavior that entails assignment of new responsibilities to subordinates and additional authority to carry them out (Yukl, G. 1998). Managers usually find it easier to speak about delegation of

The American Nurse Association defines delegation as “the transfer of responsibility for the performance of an activity from one individual to another while retaining accountability for the outcome” (Cherry, 2011). Delegation is an essential tool used by the registered nurse to routinely distribute responsibility and allow them to effectively complete more tasks during their daily routine. With this shared responsibility comes accountability for the registered nurse to know how, when and to whom he or she must appropriately distribute these tasks. To safely delegate patient care, the registered nurse must follow his or her own state

The National Council of State Boards in Nursing defines delegation as “transferring to a competent individual the authority to perform a selected nursing task in a selected situation” (National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Resources section, 4). When delegating, the registered nurse (RN) assigns nursing tasks to unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP) while still remaining accountable for the patient and the task that was assigned. Delegating is a management strategy that is used to provide more efficient care to patients. Authorizing other individuals to take on nursing responsibilities allows the nurse to complete other tasks that need tended to. However, delegation is done at the nurses’

Reyes, J. A. (2016). Nursing Delegation Guidelines for Nurses and Advanced Practice Nurses. Iowa Board Of Nursing Newsletter, 35(3), 1-4.

Delegation is an important function in any organization and in today’s environment we see it becoming increasingly important in the health care setting. For management to make the best use of their time and skills effective delegation of tasks to the staff assists in their growth and development, builds confidence and trust, and increases the amount of work completed. Effective delegating provides benefits to the organization when managers mobilize resources, share responsibilities, and focus on doing a few tasks well, rather than many things less effectively resulting in increased management and leadership potential. The need for accessible, affordable, quality health care and an ever-growing shortfall of practitioners and providers