NUR 550 Evidence-Based Practice Project Proposal: Identification of Nursing Practice Problem

 
NUR 550 Evidence-Based Practice Project Proposal: Identification of Nursing Practice Problem

PICOT Draft

Part 1: Medication errors in nursing as a result of staffing shortage

The selected nursing issue for the evidence-based practice (EBP) project is medication errors in nursing that happen due to staffing shortage. Medication errors are a significant problem in healthcare sector, especially at this time when there is nursing shaortage and high nurse turnovers. With reduced number of nurses working in the healthcare sector, the susceptibility of patients to medication errors increases, particularly adverse drug events that can lead to death and prolonged stays in hospitals (Buerhaus et al., 2017). The project will focus on the effectiveness of implementation of health information technology compared to the conventional ways of medication management to mitigate medication errors in critically ill patients. The selection of critically ill patients as the population of interest emanates from their increased vulnerability to injuries that need high-risk medication and more use of intravenous infusions which rises the possibility of medication errors. Health information technology can play an essential role in enhancing efficiency of nurses to offer required care and reduce medication errors.

Research articles and research is extremely significant in the nursing field and practice as a whole. Nurses work directly with patients on a daily basis and because of this, they are the most aware of the needs of the patient. They are also the most informed about what procedures and policies favor the quality of patient care given and what needs to be adjusted to better cater to their needs. Rigorous research is extremely important for nursing students and nurses to keep up with at every stage of their career. This is because it advances nursing practice like aiding in the shaping of healthcare policy which leads to overall advancements in health all around the globe not just within the United States. For example, the National Institute of Nursing Research is dedicated to finding new knowledge on disease prevention, disability, illness symptom management, and improvement of end-of-life care (“Importance of research in Nursing: UNCW online,” 2016). In terms of the application of research in the modern world, the importance of research can be seen with the occurrence of the pandemic of COVID-19. The world experienced a complete lockdown and incredible spike of deaths in the past two years due to a virus that has no cure and still does not hold a cure rather than a vaccine that aims to slow and decrease the spread and prevalence of the disease. It is due to research that a vaccine could be created and that nurses and other medical professionals found out what treatment methods and care plans work best to treat this disease.

While errors are inevitable and lead to detrimental effects on patients, healthcare providers can leverage technological tools to reduce their likelihood through establishing appropriate measures. Health systems and providers can reduce the problem through organization-wide processes and not just through medication administration component alone (Trimble et al., 2017). Due to the increased demand on healthcare services that has resulted in provider shortage, health information technology can offer solutions to the issue. The EBP project will delve into the issue using evidence-based practice intervention and translational research to provide possible solutions to the health systems and practitioners like nurses.