Clinical Guidelines in Practice - Paper Example

Introduction

Nurses play an essential role in providing health care services to community members. They are charged with myriads of duties ranging from administering medicines, monitoring the patient's conditions, to maintaining health records (Draper et al., 2014). Markedly, to perform their duties effectively, they are required to possess outstanding clinical experiences. This briefing essay explores three key clinical tools that are often espoused in clinical settings; clinical guidelines, practice standards, and algorithms. Moreover, as a nurse, I will offer an engaging discussion on how I intend to use these tools in clinical practice.

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According to the Institute of Medicine, abbreviated as IOM, clinical guidelines are statements that details recommendations on how to optimize patient care. Importantly, they are evidence-based and are informed by the benefits and harms of the available alternative treatment solutions (Rosenfeld & Shiffman, 2009). This is pivotal since it enables health caregivers to identify the most optimal care plan for a given patient depending on his or her condition. The clinical guidelines should be developed whilst observing standards that mirror the best practices in the clinical settings (Rosenfeld & Shiffman, 2009). Besides, they should be feasible and measurable.

I will use clinical guidelines when transfusing blood in patients that have not experienced a significantly high level of bleeding. I will adopt the Single Unit Transfusion Guideline. First, I will seek approval from the patient blood management committee. Then, I will conduct a clinical assessment to determine whether the patient needs a single unit transfusion. In this case, the patient needs to be an adult and be in a stable condition. Then, I will request for patient's consent. This is because it is an independent clinical decision that is linked to several risks. Then, will ensure that the procedure adopted is consistent with pre-transfusion guideline practices. Finally, I will clinically assess whether the patient is in a stable condition. I will ensure that there are symptoms of anemia such as chest pain, hypotension, decreased oxygen concentration, tachycardia, and increased heart rate.

On the other hand, standard practices are principle-based statements that articulate the expected conduct by the nurses (Ballweg et al., 2017). This includes the attitudes, knowledge, values, and skills that nurses need to uphold in their day-to-day professional activities. They describe what each health care professional is responsible and accountable for in their profession (Ballweg et al., 2017). Standard practices are important since they help in developing a better insight into the various roles that are performed by the nurses (Masters, 2018). They include accountability, knowledge, public trust, and client-centered practices.

Notably, throughout my profession, I purpose to act ethically, safely, and competently. I will be accountable for actions that I undertake to the employer, patient, and the public at large. The relevant legislation and employer policies will guide my practices. For instance, I will ensure that the patient's data is kept confidential and secure. Moreover, I will use evidence-based knowledge and skills in my nursing practice.

Algorithms are evidence-based guideline tools that involve step by step procedures to solve a problem. They are mostly used by nurses to assess and manage persistent cases of pain in aging adults (Jablonski et al., 2011). Markedly, I will use algorithms to evaluate a client's condition using an array of questions with a "yes" or "no" response. Finally, I will understand the disease(s) that the patient will be ailing from and provide an appropriate course of action.

Lastly, it is interesting to mention that there are certain things that I find myself doing in my practice yet I cannot offer satisfactory reasons as to why I do them. For instance, to date, am unaware of the reason why during my clinical practices, I find myself recording vital signs after ever 4-5 hours at night on stable inpatients irrespective of their need for uninterrupted sleep.

References

Ballweg, R., Brown, D., Vetrosky, D., & Ritsema, T. S. (2017). Physician Assistant: A Guide to Clinical Practice E-Book. Elsevier Health Sciences.

Draper, D. A., Felland, L. E., Liebhaber, A., & Melichar, L. (2014). The role of nurses in hospital quality improvement. Research brief, (3), 1-8.

Jablonski, A. M., DuPen, A. R., & Ersek, M. (2011). The use of algorithms in assessing and managing persistent pain in older adults. The American journal of nursing, 111(3), 34.

Masters, K. (2018). Role Development Professional Nursing Practice. Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Rosenfeld, R. M., & Shiffman, R. N. (2009). Clinical practice guideline development manual: a quality-driven approach for translating evidence into action. Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery, 140(6_suppl), S1-S43.