DQ During this program, you will complete an evidence-based practice project addressing a problem, issue, or concern in your specialty area of professional practice NUR 513 Topic 5 Discussion 1

 
I work in a pediatric CVICU and an ongoing issue has been with advancing technologies, changes in practices, and changes in charting interfaces or forms; and nursing staff willingness and acceptance in fully utilizing technology to its intended extent. There are those who have worked on this unit for a long time and don’t like the change, there are those who just miss updates, and there is inconsistency in educating staff. A great example of this can be related to Etiometry monitoring. My unit recently spent a large amount of money installing Etiometry monitors in every single patient room. When we first got it, it was explained that these monitors can collect and analyze vital patient data, help determine risk, make informed decisions on care, and reduce costs. Etiometry monitoring was supposed to collect data from patients that is often overlooked and help with anticipation of major events. However, after getting these monitors, they are often viewed as additional pieces of equipment that are often in the way. None of the nursing staff was really trained to interpret and actually understand the etiometry data. Most of the nursing staff was just taught out to turn the monitors on, and report specific numbers to providers. This has led to a disregard in terms of etiometry monitoring. Often the monitors are pushed out of the way and are not even turned on. This is just one example of how a valuable piece of technology is not being utilized; I’m sure most of us have dozens of similar examples related to equipment, charting, software, etc.

Kurt Lewin’s Change Theory could be applied to this issue, and many issues related to nursing changes in practice, and improved use of technology. Lewin’s Change theory can be summarized into three phases: unfreezing, movement, and refreezing (Current Nursing, 2020). The unfreezing phase involves overcoming resistance and creating a driving force for behavioral change. The movement phase involves the change itself or changing the thoughts or behaviors. And refreezing is making the change or new behavior habit. In terms of whether this is the best theory, I cannot say. There are so many nursing theories that can be effectively applied to many situations.

References

Current Nursing. (2020). Nursing theories: Open access articles on nursing theories and models. https://currentnursing.com/nursing_theory/change_theory.html