Nurse Preceptor Suggestion: A Case Study

The district nursing team were now to be responsible for the wound care of an ulcer on the sole of her right foot on her impending discharge. She had previously attended the practice nurse and a podiatry service based within her local clinic. Due to a change in circumstances, she was now clearly housebound for the near future due to mobility issues. Prior to an arranged visit, the patient had called the nurse to advise her that she was pyrexial and was experiencing a pain in her right foot that was different from her normal neuropathic pain, which was often problematic. She was also finding it difficult to mobilise and was disinclined for diet but was taking oral fluids.

I am a second year nursing student in my third week of the practicum placement on a surgical ward with my co-student and the morning shift registered nurses. We had just finished analysing the patients handover report (Levett-Jones & Bourgeois, 2015) and I had been assigned to work with the registered nurse. I was looking after Mrs. Brown (pseudonym) is 82 years old New Zealander was admitted to surgical ward on the 08/06/16 for multiple SCC removals from L) hand and L) foot with skin grafts.

A surgical nurse is responsible for monitoring and ensuring quality healthcare for a patient following surgery. Assessment, diagnosis, planning, intervention, and outcome evaluation are inherent in the post operative nurse’s role with the aim of a successful recovery for the patient. The appropriate provision of care is integral for prevention of complications that can arise from the anaesthesia or the surgical procedure. Whilst complications are common at least half of all complications are preventable (Haynes et al., 2009). The foundations of Mrs Hilton’s nursing plan are to ensure that any post surgery complications are circumvented. My role as Mrs Hilton’s surgical nurse will involve coupling my knowledge and the professional

Evaluation is the third stage of Gibbs model of reflection and requires me to state what was good and bad about the event. While reflecting back on the incident I felt that there was one thing which I could have dealt with differently and also some aspects which demonstrated good practice. On the first hand, this incident made me realised that I was part of the team and that I was also involved in positioning and preparing the patient prior to surgery, therefore I had a responsibility to find out from the patient if he had any concerns. On the other hand, I should have communicated to the patient, explaining what I was about to do maybe he would have had the opportunity to raise his problem with the shoulder before lifting his arm. The Health Professions Council (HPC 2008) clearly states that it is the responsibility of an operating department practitioner to ensure that effective communication occurs when delivering patient care. In addition, Psychologist Helmreich, R. (2000) said, `better communication’ is being the most useful way of reducing errors.

A nurse attending stated “during the morning’s second surgery, he actually dozed off. The nurse took him aside and recommended that he take a break, but he refused and returned to the operation.” The nurse here was in fault in more ways than one. This nurse should never allowed the doctor return back to operate on the patient, he should have been removed from the operating room immediately. The nurse should have

* Personnel Issues: One of the key barriers to effective interaction for the pre-op nurses is that they are not getting any information from the registrar or the surgeon related to the patients unique circumstances. There is not a communication process in place for the pre-op nurse to actively communicate with the surgeon or his office regarding a patient’s care during their day of surgery. An additional factor in this situation was the pre-op nurse documented the mother’s contact information in her notepad, but not on the

The nursing supervisor has multiple issues to address in this scenario, the use of restraints and formation of a pressure ulcer are of a great concern, but I believe these are easily rectified with training and follow-up audits to ensure

Beneficence compounded by nurse-physician communication created ethical problems in this case. Mainly, Joanna’s assessment of Mrs. Kelly being ignored by the resident physician and the nursing supervisor. Joanna worked within the scope and standards of practice, she assessed, evaluated, and monitored her patient’s condition. She then reported her findings to the resident twice, and also sought nursing support from her shift supervisor. After Joanna’s first call to the resident, and her continued concern she needed to advocate in a proactive manner. Continuing her assessment of Mrs. Kelly to include palpation and auscultation could have offered additional clinical information enabling her to articulate the problem to the resident and nursing supervisor.

This week, I was given the opportunity to care for two female patients – 205(1) and (2). The first patient, 205-1, was admitted with respiratory distress and had a past medical history of hypertension, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. She was initially put on 2 L/min of oxygen and placed on oxygen titration protocol with orders to maintain O2 saturations between 88-92%. The patient was oriented to person and place, but had difficulty with time. She was also obese (BMI 30) and deemed a moderate assist with ambulation. Her care plan included total assistance with ADLs, smoking cessation and oxygen protocols, limited salt intake (3mg), and chronic pain management. The second patient, 205-2, was admitted with a right pelvic fracture and had

I returned to the recovery ward, my patient was still hypertensive and tachycardic and I felt by assessing her non-verbal signals of communication that she was still in great discomfort. After 15 minutes of no improvement I returned to theatre to see the anaesthetist, I explained that I was not happy with the patient’s level of pain and requested that he come to the recovery ward to assess the patient. He reluctantly came to the recovery ward and after spending a few minutes assessing the patient agreed that she was in an unacceptable level of pain and prescribed a further 5mg of morphine which I duly gave to the patient in 2.5mg increments. After this the patients heart rate and blood pressure decreased to pre operative levels, she seemed to be more relaxed and eventually fell asleep. After a further period of time spent continually reassessing the patient and when I was satisfied she was comfortable and haemodynamically stable I discharged the patient back to the ward.

This can include cases of perceived “pain-seeking” patients or “frequent flyers”. It can be difficult to treat those we see as trying to “use the system” for pure personal gain equally to those we may see as “truly ill”. It is important to remember to treat everyone in the same manner. Another important provision is provision 3. This provision states, “The nurse promotes, advocates for, and strives to protect the health, safety, and rights of the patient.” This means that nurses must always do everything thinking of the patient’s best interest first. This includes making sure they are fully informed before signing any consents for procedures and questioning any orders that may seem inappropriate for said patient. It is the nurse’s job to be the patient’s advocate and to always provide a safe environment for the patient.

During the pre-briefing, the group collectively discussed the patient’s history, presenting issues and other influences to the patient's care. As well, during this time, the group worked to identify role expectations, protocols, timelines and other presenting issues that would require consideration, including impaired circulation/post-op bleeding, mental status or hypoxemia. Decision-making in this aspect was based on the determined role and intended learning outcomes.

As the primary nurse for the patient, I felt it was my responsibility to inform

She immediately started to worry and stated “What excuse can I give you so you leave me alone?” I responded that we just needed to get ready for the day and we did not even need to call it therapy. Once she sat up she started hyperventilating. My supervisor was in the room at the time and said this was exactly what would happen the last time she stayed in the TCU. After 45 minutes, lots of encouragement, rest breaks and maximum assistance we finally got her dressed and situated in her recliner. While I was documenting the patient was talking to the nurse about how she did not want to have therapy anymore. The nurse responded to the patient and asked her why she was in the TCU if she did not want therapy. In the same week, this patient declined therapy all together and both physical therapy and occupational therapy had to discharge

During the home health observation day, there were several opportunities to observe a variety of patients with varying levels of functioning ability, different illnesses, and different needs and levels of interaction with the nurse. The first patient seen was a seventy-three year old Caucasian female with an ulcer on her right heel. Several weeks prior, she had scratched her left leg and she also had several small wounds on her left leg. The orders were to clean and redress the ulcer. She has a history of end stage renal disease, pneumonia, weakness, diabetes, dialysis, and right hip fracture. Upon entering the home, the patient was found to be sitting in a wheel chair in the living room watching television with her husband close by her side. She greeted the nurse with a smile and began to update her on her current condition. Her heel was “hurting” and she rated her pain an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10. She also had some “swelling” that she could not “get to go away; because, she could not get up and walk. They need to fix my foot so that I can get up and get around.” She told the nurse that she had been to see the doctor “yesterday” and the doctor had given her a written order that she wanted her to see. The order was written for an evaluation for a soft pressure shoe fitting. The nurse read the order to