Providing High Quality and Safe Nursing Care in Adult Nursing, Article Critique Example

According to the Department of Health (2008 np), high-quality care is seen as effective and safe nursing based on patient needs and building a positive patient. (Gaboyan and Pivkina, 2022, np) states that the attention to high-quality care by the National Health Service is instituted on The Code, which demands the necessity for every healthcare giver to operate jointly. This will ensure people’s empowerment, maintain excellent health, offer effective medications, and keep patients safe by lessening the risk of harm and poor health. Parallel to excellent quality care involves quality and service enhancement for the NHS. Alderwick et al. (2017 np) stated in their report that quality improvement was essential to fulfill the requirements and the needs of every stakeholder in the NHS (NHS, 2019, pg. 3). With the rising financial pressures on the NHS that frightens to influence the delivery and quality of care to patients, the significance of giving high-quality care is promoted by preserving the standards and quality of the healthcare structure in the United Kingdom (Robertson et al., 2017, 6). This critical analysis will scrutinize the role of risk assessment and quality improvement methods while providing safe and greater nursing care for adults. The critical analysis aims to offer an understanding of the above while applying a broader piece of evidence to support the existing arguments within the essay. In addition, there is an opportunity to mirror personal individual methods to care as a nursing student will portray throughout the essay. The emphasis of this reflection will be based on my influence on the provision of high-quality care.

Abu-Baker et al. (2021, pg. 4) state that applying evidence-based practice in nursing is vital since it can enhance the care provided to patients by health workers and nurses. The implementation of EBP into nursing elevates the delivery of care and also regulates nursing practice thus, improves patients’ outcomes. Risk evaluation and quality improvement techniques in this critical valuation determine how the two interrelate to bring high-quality care (Department of Health, 2013 pg. 8). For instance, adult nursing students tend to explore multiple medical cases. The selected risk assessment approach for this analysis is the Alcohol abuse identification test. The safeguarding adult examinations will be regarded as the quality improvement approach. The rationale for these two selections is based on the connection between protecting vulnerable adults and alcohol abuse. Kuria et al. (2012, pg. 1) conducted a review that focused on alcohol abuse and protecting vulnerable adults and discovered that the protection of vulnerable adults was often piloted late and usually following a disaster. The Safeguarding Adults Review showed that alcohol was an essential factor in one’s life or death (Sandwell Safeguarding Adults Board, 2020 np). Alcohol Change (2020 np) argued that adults who were used to alcohol needed safeguarding and relevant interventions to help them from their drinking dependency. The analysis further stated that it was a mandatory role for all adults within the care of grownups dependent on alcohol to realize the vital responsibility that alcohol had in an individual’s life and the influence it had on one’s quality of life, including general health. Statistically, alcohol consumption is the greatest health risk element contributing to poor health, death, or disability (Alcohol Change, 2020 np). Approximately 24 percent of adults in the United Kingdom usually drink above the suggested daily limit, with at least 27 percent categorized as binge drinkers who perpetually surpass the alcohol consumption limit, as the Chief Medical Officer advocates. If the statistics are put into perspective, approximately 602,391 drinkers in the U.K. seems to be dependent on alcohol, and only 18 percent of those individuals receive the medication needed to help them.

Multiple forms of excessive drinking usually put an individual at serious harm or risk. The distinctive sorts of alcohol consumption depend on the person and their complex health needs. For instance, an individual might be a binge drinker and consumes alcohol on a few occasions, while another consumes alcohol persistently. This is a vital factor in early mortality, relationship failure, long-term impairment, trauma, and hospitalization. Rehm (2011, pg. 135) argues that most communities across the globe suffer substantial economic loss due to alcohol-related problems.

AUDIT was innovated as a screening device for binge drinking to help healthcare experts locate patients who would enjoy total abstinence or reduction of alcohol consumption. Most heavy alcohol consumers do not usually have a diagnosis. As a result, they frequently portray issues or symptoms that are not connected to drinking. Therefore, the AUDIT tool was designed to help the health practitioner determine whether a patient is alcohol dependent, engages in hazardous (risky) drinking, or is harmful drinking. Through this assessment, patients that need individualized care are recognized and offered the chance to receive medication that suits their needs. Alcohol intake practice, known as risky drinking, raises the chances of adverse outcomes for the consumer or other people (British Psychological Society, 2011 np). Hazardous drinking habits are vital for public health despite the lack of disorders in the individual consumer. Alcohol consumption that has an undesirable effect on mental or physical health is considered harmful consumption (Donelan et al., 2019, pg. 944). A few individuals would involve societal consequences in the list of adverse impacts of alcohol. Several behavioral, physiological, and cognitive issues may manifest due to alcohol dependency, especially after normal alcohol use (Mende, 2019 np). These phenomena usually involve a robust urge to drink, reduced control over the use of alcohol, and perpetual drinking. Despite adverse impacts, they offer drinking a massive priority unlike other responsibilities and activities, rising alcohol acceptance, and a physical withdrawal response when alcohol usage is thwarted.

From a social standpoint, alcohol abuse contributes to multiple health risks factors such as augmented health problems, distorted mental health, and injuries. Public health lies as the personal health of patients seems to drop. Therefore, nurses should ensure that health results for patients are focused on elevating the existing health situation and boosting the effect that strange enduring health problems have on the nursing setting, including the nurse.

According to Hansson et al. (2008 np), how the patient care approach has been implemented in medical facilities has changed with time. Now, collaborative centers operate between different groups (Hewison et al., 2003 np). Patients must be complete participants during the planning and delivery of their care, especially when using this approach. The establishment of the government’s plan for patient empowerment and patient-centered care further demonstrated this new approach to operation. The World Health Organization also commands that patients must always be contacted before undertaking any procedure. In addition, the Department of Health also specifies that the NHS should emphasize empowering people frequently to give them power over their healthcare (WHO, 2019, np). The concept of patient empowerment might seem a common term to healthcare experts since some have discussed involving the patient care provision process. However, some healthcare professionals seem to employ deceptive tactics to fully avert implementing the need, even at the risk of violating guidelines.

Through the application of the AUDIT tool as a risk assessment method, patients categorized as being vulnerable to harm from alcohol abuse are most prospective to be provided the intercessions they require early enough through the primary screening procedure. The effect of this primary screening procedure on patient care is associated with the NMC guidelines, as the rules stipulate the essential principle of presenting actual care that is person-centered and emphasizes beneficial health results. The selected quality improvement technique involves the Safeguarding Adults Review. The Care Act of 2014 brought the statutory role for everyone operating with vulnerable adults to pilot Safeguarding Adult Reviews. SARS acts as one of the principal values of the Care Act and one of the main responsibilities of the Safeguarding Adult Board. When seeing the assignment of the healthcare professionals in the SARS clinical appointing, groups usually operate as part of the three central affiliates. Through the SARS, room for improvement, areas of weaknesses, and strengths are identified to uplift the quality of service provided to those categorized as needing extra care and support (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2016, pg.3).

Kuria et al. (2012, pg. 2) piloted a quantitative methodological study aiming to investigate the influence alcohol addiction had on people and the other effect alcohol addiction had on psychological disorders, i.e., depression. The research findings stated that depression had a higher chance of presenting itself in persons with prolonged or deep alcohol dependency. This paper has mentioned that alcohol abuse can result in multiple illnesses, including depression. Kuria et al. (2012, pg. 1) argue that depression is swiftly spotted in individuals with alcohol addiction. As a result, it can be medicated instantly, thus, averting the rising risk of healthcare problems. The quantitative study approach was a vital strength as the data presentation helped in analysis that gave insight into the spectacles of the influence of alcohol addiction and psychological implications such as depression. In addition, another major strength of the quantitative methodological approach was inherent in the demonstration of the advantages of piloting AUDIT screenings before giving or determining medication for adults recognized as being in danger of self-harm through excessive consumption of alcohol. In addition, the employment and steady use of testing systems can be said to have beneficial effects on patient outcomes that require complex care needs.

Burnout can inhibit the quality of healthcare provision in the adult nursing unit. Janssen define burnout as the buildup of emotions that nursing professionals often experience when their emotional reserves drop (Babor, 2011, np). This concept was later defined as a syndrome of contracted emotional weariness, personal accomplishment, and depersonalization. Janssen and Maslach’s study is a landmark section of research since their perspective on burnout has currently attained global acceptance (Babor, 2011, np). The concept of burnout is employed in nursing training, especially when examining the quality improvement in the provision of healthcare services and patient-centered care (Greene, 2014, pg. 4). Signs of emotional weariness in nurses involve an overall lack of spirit, emotion, interest, and trust. It also encompasses impatience, sensations of tiredness, use-up, wearing out, and frustration. Depersonalization involves intentionally neglecting the features that make a patient interesting and special. The propensity of nurses to negatively examine their job is the third piece of burnout condition. Nurses’ self-esteem is usually down, and they are often not satisfied with their occupational achievement.

Burnout is an obvious outcome of work stress in nursing that negatively influences job contentment. The intensity of burnout is due to a greater level of job stress and poor work satisfaction (Myhren et al., 2013 np). As a result, interventions that focus on limiting burnout and occupational stress are needed since nursing burnout can damage the quality of care. The National Health Service has seen the prospect of impacting nurses’ burnout and job-related stress by improving working conditions, job satisfaction, and the work environment. The promotion of worker’s health is among the components of worker satisfaction and an aspect that positively impacts the intensity of stress (Kieft et al., 2014, pg. 5).

As a newly skilled nurse, it seems obvious that there is an expected volume of pressure on me to provide patient-centered and excellent, effective care. Meeting patients with complex care needs often necessitates a degree of experience, as seen above, with the desire to continue learning and growing professionally. Burnout usually results in a poor style of practice, including unsuccessful patient-centered care that does not fulfill the expectations of the nursing career. Creating a devaluing of the risk elements related to all patients that require complex care needs is mandatory since it improves the quality of the given care regardless of the expectations and the maintenance of nursing standards.

Work Cited

Abu-Baker, N.N., AbuAlrub, S., Obeidat, R.F. and Assmairan, K., 2021. Evidence-based practice beliefs and implementations: a cross-sectional study among undergraduate nursing students. BMC nursing, 20(1), pp.1-8.

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Donelan, K., Chang, Y., Berrett-Abebe, J., Spetz, J., Auerbach, D.I., Norman, L. and Buerhaus, P.I. (2019). Care Management For Older Adults: The Roles Of Nurses, Social Workers, And Physicians. Health Affairs, 38(6), pp.941–949. doi:https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2019.00030.

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