Medical/Surgical Unit Team Nursing
An innovative nursing care model of medical/surgical unit team nursing seems to be one of the most reasonable and useful, to my mind. Banner Estrella Medical Center could implement this model for its activities considering the results it may have. Medical/surgical unit team nursing is a nursing team delivery model that incorporates licensed practical nurses (LPNs) into care delivery in order to better leverage registered nurse (RN) time and decrease the need for RNs. The model relies on each member of the care team working to the fullest of her or his training and licensure. The considered innovation fits the chosen medical establishment perfectly. The vision of the Center and its non-profit mission “is to improve health care conditions and develop the science and the standard of health for care delivery, which the hospital should follow (Our nonprofit mission, n. d.). Thus, implementing medical unit team nursing can greatly improve the quality of health care as the nurses will have more time to devote to each patient individually and the registered nurses will be strictly controlled in their activities. This model will help to optimize the Center’s quality and cost of health care and wisely distribute the duties among nurses.
Development Team for Medical/Surgical Unit Team Nursing Model
A team for a medical unit will consist of LPNs and RNs. Depending on the HR organization of Banner Estrella Medical Center, a team will have from two to four nurses. As it was mentioned earlier, LPNs will control RNs and this improved management trade will lead to decreasing the number of RNs. Moreover, higher rates of special surgical certification on surgical units mean lower rates of central-line associated bloodstream infection after operations. This fact shows how the educational level of nurses is important. Of course, nursing teams would be formed by surgeons with the help of physicians. Local executive officers can be very helpful in providing the nursing team with all necessary materials, including technological means, and controlling the implementation of the model. The nurses on board will directly implement the model as they will become the main participants of it. Having several nurses in a team, for example, one main nurse and an assisting nurse definitely have its own pluses. Two nurses, working together, can be very useful in dealing with emotional and psychological problems of a patient. He/she will most likely listen to two nurses, educating him/her, then to one only. Some nurses are more experienced than others, therefore younger nurses may turn to them for some help. Nurses working in a team should have developed communicative and problem-solving skills, as they will always discuss their decisions with their colleagues.
There is one simple physical fact that has to be considered when implementing the given model. A team of nurses needs bigger nicely-aired accommodation, as nurses work in a toxic environment. Therefore, developing a medical unit team nursing model needs a well-thought plan of how nurses will be grouped and which factors will contribute to their optimized teamwork.
Incorporation of Medical/Surgical Unit Team Nursing into Banner Estrella Medical Center
I would advise to incorporate and adapt the considered model for Banner Estrella Medical Center gradually. The Center offers a wide range of surgical procedures. It means that the medical institution has many surgeons and nurses (Our nonprofit mission, n. d.). It would be helpful to keep in mind the number of nurses and surgeons and form a team for each surgeon (physician). The next step would be considering the qualification of the nurses. Each team should have an LPN to be a leader. Inviting a psychologist to assist in interviewing the nurses to learn more about their abilities to work in a team and to solve conflict situations could be of great help. Thus, training for nurses and educational programs that will allow them to ge