Nurse Advocate

Nurse Advocate

Advocacy is one of the significant responsibilities of a nurse. As a nurse advocate, I am obligated to work in the interest of patients. I give continuous care to patients; thus, my advocate role is vital. Nursing advocacy is helpful to patients in innumerable situations. For instance, I help patients understand their diagnosis, steps toward management, complications that occur with management, and the expected treatment outcomes. Hire our assignment writing services if your assignment is devastating you.

An ethical dilemma occurs when two potential choices are not satisfactory from an ethical point of view. An opportunity to be an advocate occurs when there is a need to respect and protect patients’ rights (Luz et al., 2019). Case in point: a nurse must give a patient prescribed medication while the patient has the right to refuse the medication. It is the nurse’s ethical duty to administer the medication. The nurse’s advocacy role is also to respect and protect the patient’s rights.

One way to attain a safety culture is by keeping abreast of the current guidelines dictating patient care. Knowledge of current practices and incorporating them into the care process ensure a high level of safety (O’Donovan et al., 2020). Furthermore, an unsafe practice should be called out and stopped during care. Another way of attaining a culture of safety is working as a team. Team members working together are less likely to make an error. If an error is made, it is quickly noticed and corrected.

In my current practice, there is no patient advocate for staff, patients, and families. It is very crucial to have a patient advocate. It is an ethical requirement of the nursing practice to advocate for patients (Monroe, 2019). Considering the intricacy of the continuous medical care framework, patients and their families usually end up overwhelmed with the data they get from clinicians. Moreover, the absence of specific information and the pressure they face in the hospital environment causes patients and their family members to seek help from healthcare providers. Patient advocates should guide patients, their families, and even staff members to ease the process of healthcare provision.

References

Luz, K. R. D., Vargas, M. A. D. O., Peter, E., Barlem, E., Viana, R. A. P. P., & Ventura, C. A. A. (2019). Advocacy in intensive care and hospitalization by court order: what are nurses’ perspectives? Texto & Contexto-Enfermagem, 28. https://doi.org/10.1590/1980-265X-TCE-2018-0157

Monroe, H. A. (2019). Nurses’ professional values: Influences of experience and ethics education. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 28(9-10), 2009–2019. https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn.14806

O’Donovan, R., Ward, M., De Brún, A., & McAuliffe, E. (2019). Safety culture in health care teams: A narrative review of the literature. Journal of Nursing Management 27(5), 871-883. https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.12740

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Nurse Advocate

What is your experience as a nurse advocate? Please provide an example if possible.
As you think about situations for improved patient care, what makes a situation an ethical dilemma versus an opportunity to be an advocate?
Identify two specific actions you can take in your current practice setting to advocate for a “culture of safety.”
Has a patient advocate been available for staff, patients, and families in your current or past practice?
If so, please describe the patient advocate’s role and how you utilized this person in an advocacy situation.
If not, please state why you believe this role is essential. Provide evidence to support your response.