Single Room Maternity Care (SRMC), Capstone Project Example

The introduction of the single room maternity care (SRMC) model was meant to replace the traditional maternity care models that involved the use of many rooms to cater for clients and their families. The model however faced the risk of adoption-resistance from the stakeholders involved based on the level of satisfaction from the new way of offering and receiving maternity care. Though the satisfaction of the clients and their families was a priority in the implementation of the SRMC model, the satisfaction of the nurses offering the care could not be ignored. This project aimed at assessing the contentment of SRMC nurses working in the new model compared to the traditional models. The internal and external factors affecting the nursing satisfaction in the single rooms were explored and recommendations were made on how to tackle satisfaction of nurses in the SRMC model.

The traditional models consisted of different rooms for the labor, delivery, recovery, and postpartum stages of the birthing process. These rooms meant that nurses would remain in one room to serve different clients for a particular stage. The SRMC model reversed the traditional mode of operation by carrying out all the stages of the birthing process in one room. One nurse is assigned to a client from the first stage to the last stage. The model allowed nurses to develop close relationships with the clients and their families, which enhanced the accuracy of meeting the needs and demands.

Nurses in the SRMC model have reported more contentment in their care delivery than in the traditional models. The satisfaction of the nurses is attributed to the training they receive, the closeness between them and the clients, autonomy of the decisions made, and the physical setting of the single rooms (Reime, Dennis, & Janssen, 2006). The training offered to SRMC nurses has promoted satisfaction through instilling of the necessary skills to execute their duties and boosting confidence in their competency (Janssen, et al., 2001). The closeness between the nurse and the clients has promoted satisfaction of nurses through development and sustenance of freedom of expression. This freedom allows clients and their families to communicate freely their needs, fears, and concerns to the nurses. The nurses in turn are able to provide the necessary information about the birthing process in the SRMC model. Autonomy of decision making in the SRMC model promotes nursing satisfaction through instilling the feeling of independence and accountability among the nurses. The physical setting of the single rooms boosts satisfaction through convenience in the accessibility of the maternity care equipment and creation of a friendly working atmosphere.

Though the internal factors that enhance nursing satisfaction in the single rooms have been identified, the external factors should be addressed as well. The external factors include rewarding of the nurses, formulation, and implementation of policies, and manufacture of easy-to-use equipment. The hospital management should consider rewarding the SRMC nurses for good performance to motivate them further. The nurses will feel appreciated for their service delivery in a model that requires mastery of all the stages of the birthing process. The government should carry out their mandate of formulation, implementation, and enforcement of SRMC policies to guide the operations and procedures in the model (Lowdermilk, Perry, & Cashion, 2014). Nurses will be satisfied when they work in a model that is orderly with procedures clearly spelt out and adhered to. The manufacturers of SRMC equipment should ensure that they supply quality equipment that is easy to use and meets international standards.

The continued replacement of the traditional models of maternity care by the SRMC model should be done using the Kurt Lewin’s change theory to ensure satisfaction of all the stakeholders. The unfreezing, moving, and refreezing stages should be applied effectively to prevent resistance to change (Ziegler, 2005). Attaining a balance between the driving and the restraining forces will ensure the new change is established as a norm in the maternity care system. The project successfully addressed the nursing satisfaction concern in the single room maternity care. The recommendations made in this project will enhance the strategies set up to handle contentment of nurses.

References

Janssen, P. A., Harris, S. J., Soolsma, J., Klein, M. C., and Seymour, L. C. (2001). “Single room maternity care: The nursing response”. Birth, 28(3), 173-179.

Lowdermilk, D. L., Perry, S. E., & Cashion, M. C. (2014). Maternity Nursing (8^th Edition). Maryland Heights: Mosby Elsevier.

Reime, B., Dennis, C., & Janssen, P. A. (2006). “Development and Psychometric Testing of the Care in Obstetrics: Measure for Testing Satisfaction (COMFORTS) Scale”. Research in Nursing & Health, 29, 51-60.

Ziegler, S. M. (2005). Theory-Directed Nursing Practice (2^nd Edition). New York: Springer Publishing Company Incorporated.