Safeguarding patient outcomes is the primary function that healthcare providers serve. Despite their best efforts, most of these providers are unable to deliver quality and affordable care. This is particularly true for providers in the United States. The systems theory model presents insights that the providers can use to improve care. In addition to facilitating the delivery of quality care, the application of this model also enhances patient safety (Johnson, Miller & Horowitz, 2008). Therefore, if they are truly committed to offering care that is in line with professional standards, the providers should integrate the systems theory approach.
Description of Unit
The unit in question primarily attends to the needs of patients with terminal illnesses. Most of the patients die at the unit since their illnesses are incurable. Despite this, the unit strives to prolong the lives of the patients while ensuring that they are comfortable. The various components of the systems theory approach allows one to gain a deeper understanding of the unit and its operations. Inputs, throughputs, output, event cycles, and negative feedback are the main components of the approach (Meyer, & O’Brien-Pallas, 2010). The inputs refer to the resources and energy inflows that allow a department to fulfill its mandate. The main resources of the unit include personnel, funding from donors and the government, and the supplies that are used for treatment. These inputs drive the operations of the unit. The throughputs refer to the various processes and internal structures that facilitate the transformation of the inputs into concrete outcomes (Meyer, & O’Brien-Pallas, 2010). For the unit, the innovative nursing interventions are the main throughputs. Through these interventions, the nurses are able to exploit their expertise and resources to deliver quality care.
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The outputs and event cycles are other elements of the systems theory approach. Basically, the outputs are the specific outcomes that a unit desires to achieve (Meyer, & O’Brien-Pallas, 2010). Prolonging the lives of its patients is the primary outcome that the unit strives to achieve. The systems theory approach regards systems as cycles of events. These cycles are the routine operations that facilitate service delivery (Meyer, & O’Brien-Pallas, 2010). Among the event cycles which allow the unit to continue attending to the terminally ill patients are the payments received for treatment. As one examines the systems theory approach, they are able to understand why it has gained popularity. This approach recognizes negative feedback as a resource that can be leveraged to improve service delivery (Meyer, & O’Brien-Pallas, 2010). The unit undergoes regular audits intended to determine if its level of service delivery meets set standards. In some cases, it has been noted that the unit has failed to satisfy expectations. The negative feedback has enabled the unit to identify the areas of care that require improvement,
Description of Problem
The delivery of quality and safe care requires all practitioners to share a common purpose (Manley et al., 2014). It is also important for the practitioners to focus their efforts on providing person-centered care. The unit whose processes have been described above does not recognize the value of person-centered, purpose-driven service delivery. It was observed that the mortality rate at the unit is worryingly high. While it is expected that all patients treated at the unit will eventually die, most of the patients die within a few weeks after admission. The systems theory approach can be used to understand the root causes of the high mortality rate at the unit. Inadequate inputs, inefficient throughputs and inconsistent and unreliable event cycles were identified as some of the factors to blame for the problem that the unit faces. The unit does not have enough nurses. Moreover, the few nurses are negligent and fail to adequately address the needs of the patients. The interventions that the nurses implement are outdated, costly and ineffective. Furthermore, the unit receives inadequate funding and most of the patients are too poor to pay for care. Essentially, a combination of external and internal failures is to blame for the high mortality rate. Another issue that is responsible for the problem is that the unit has failed to adopt negative feedback. Various audits have revealed that the mortality rate is unacceptably high and that urgent corrective measures are needed. Despite these revelations, the nurses continue to be negligent, sponsors refuse to allocate more funding and the unit has not hired more nurses.
Addressing the Problem
That the unit needs to address the problem is clear. In the discussion that follows, various aspects of resolving the problem are examined.
Desired Outcome
When developing an intervention, healthcare institutions need to begin with a definition of the outcomes that they wish to achieve. The desired outcomes will guide the implementation of the intervention. Furthermore, by defining the outcome, an institution is able to measure progress and evaluate if the outcome has been achieved. The main outcome that the unit described above would like to accomplish is to minimize mortality. This outcome will be measured by reference to the length of stay of patients. If patients stay longer before their death, the unit can conclude that this outcome has been achieved.
Goals and Objectives
For desired outcomes to be achieved, healthcare providers need to outline specific goals and objectives. Currently, the unit has eight nurses. It has been determined that to deliver care effectively, at least 20 nurses are needed. One of the goals that the unit should pursue is increasing the number of nurses to 20. Adequately staffed institutions are better placed to attend to the various needs of patients (Buchan, & Aiden, 2008). Increasing funding is another goal that the unit should pursue. When institutions have sufficient amounts of funds, they are able to purchase the resources and materials required to deliver care. Challenging the nurses to embrace modern and more effective interventions is yet another objective that will facilitate the attainment of the desired outcome discussed above. Among the factors responsible for adverse health outcomes is the failure by practitioners to adopt evidence-based practice. If the unit is to fully tackle the problem, its nurses and other practitioners need to implement strategies whose effectiveness has been established through research.
Translating Goals and Objectives into Policies and Procedures
While goals and objectives are important, they are useless unless they are translated into policies and procedures. The unit needs to implement concrete actions so as to ensure that the goals and objectives are met. Adopting a policy that places focus on patient wellbeing is one of the measures that the unit should adopt. Patient-focused and person-centered approaches hold the key to effective delivery of care (Gluyas, 2015). The unit’s nurses need to offer personalized and compassionate care to the patients. As they approach end of their lives, terminally-ill patients require tender care, warmth and reminders that they are valued. The unit also needs to introduce a training program for the nurses. As mentioned earlier, the interventions that the nurses implement are outdated and ineffective. By adopting proper training procedures, the nurses will gain the insights and skills they need to improve quality of care. Training is among the approaches that have been shown to enhance the quality of care (Chaghari et al., 2017). The adoption of robust fundraising strategies is another policy that the unit should adopt. The unit’s problem of inadequate funding can be blamed on its over-reliance on a few donors. As it expands its donor base, the unit will be able to meet all its financial commitments, thereby achieving the desired outcome.
Relevant Professional Standards
In an effort to challenge nurses and other medical practitioners to strive to safeguard patient wellness, various professional standards have been developed. Thanks to these standards, the performance of practitioners can be assessed. A number of these standards are relevant to the unit. Lifelong learning, ethical conduct, patient advocacy and responsible resource utilization are among the standards that nurses are required to satisfy (Patsy, 2016). Through lifelong learning, nurses gain insights and enhance their expertise. Patient advocacy enables them to defend the rights of patients. As they use resources responsibly, the nurses are able to improve efficiency. All these standards are relevant to the unit because their adoption would solve the problem that the unit faces. For example, thanks to continuous learning, the nurses at the unit will recognize the importance of adopting evidence-based interventions. As they advocate for the patients, the nurses will appeal to donors and take all necessary steps to prolong the lives of the patients. The responsible utilization of resources will see the nurses use the limited funding in the most efficient way. Overall, the different professional standards will challenge the nurses to do all that is needed to achieve the desired outcome.
Upholding Mission and Values, and Improving Culture and Climate
The mission of the unit is to deliver quality, affordable and safe care to all of its patients. This seems ironical given that the unit has failed to provide the patients with care that meets basic standards. Towards the fulfilment of this mission, the unit is driven by a number of values. Compassion, quality and social justice are some of the values. It is clear that the practices at the unit are inconsistent with these values. It has been recommended that the unit should implement a number of interventions to improve care. The interventions include training and soliciting funding from more donors. As it implements these interventions, the unit can expect to achieve its mission and demonstrate its values. For example, training will enable the nurses to deliver quality and safe care. Appealing to donors will allow the unit to offer affordable care. The recommended proposals will also improve the culture and climate of the unit. Currently, this unit completely disregards professional standards. It has established a culture that encourages negligence thus exposing the patients to harm. By implementing the proposed interventions, the unit’s culture and climate will undergo transformation. For example, training will establish a culture of competence, lifelong learning and professionalism.
In conclusion, in all their endeavors, nurses and other healthcare practitioners should strive to promote patient wellbeing. The nurses in the unit discussed above have clearly failed to perform their role as required. All the challenges that compromise the wellbeing of the patients. The inadequate funding combines with lack of commitment on the part of the nurses to expose the patients to harm. Using the systems theory approach, this unit should implement changes. Training and expanding the donor base are among the initiatives that the unit should pursue. Through the implementation of the initiatives, the unit will achieve its mission while creating a climate of professionalism.
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