Time Management Strategies for New Nurses.

This column is designed to help new nurses in their first year at the bedside-a time of insecurity, growth, and constant challenges-and to offer advice as they learn what it means to be a nurse. This article provides strategies and tips new nurses can use to improve their time management skills.

Elaboración y validación de una cartilla sobre parto humanizado / Elaboration and validation of a booklet on humanized childbirth

INTRODUCCIÓN: La atención humanizada del parto se centra en el buen trato a la gestante, sin embargo, algunas maternas experimentan violencia obstétrica, lo cual afecta a su bienestar. Se hace necesario contar con herramientas validadas que permitan informar, comunicar y educar sobre prácticas que contribuyen a hacer del parto una experiencia humanizada. MATERIAL Y MÉTODO: Estudio de validación con el objetivo de desarrollar una cartilla educomunicativa sobre parto humanizado, a partir de la revisión bibliográfica, la posterior validación por parte de 16 especialistas y 100 participantes del público objetivo, en 2019. RESULTADOS: Los especialistas calificaron la cartilla con una media del índice de Validez de Contenido (IVC) de 0,94 y una confiabilidad, Alfa de Cronbach de 0,81. En población objetivo, el nivel de respuesta positiva osciló entre el 87 y el 100 %, con una media de 97,9%. DISCUSIÓN: Haciendo revisión de literatura y cuidando los detalles de escritura, forma y fondo, se logró elaborar una cartilla que mostró alto IVC para brindar educación sobre parto humanizado a gestantes y familiares. Algunas fortalezas fueron: la rigurosidad del proceso, la idoneidad de las encuestadoras y el tamaño de muestra. La principal debilidad es que la recolección de la información se llevó a cabo en instituciones de Salud. CONCLUSIONES: La cartilla elaborada es válida para garantizar el entendimiento, por parte de maternas y familiares, del parto humanizado. Se considera material relevante e innovador para educar en este tema, como un evento de impacto en la vida del binomio madre-hijo y su familia

INTRODUCTION: Humanized childbirth care focuses on the good treatment of pregnant women; however, some mothers experience obstetric violence, which affects their wellbeing. It is necessary to have validated tools that permit informing, communicating, and educating on practices that contribute to making the delivery process a humanized experience. METHODS: This was a validation study consisting on the development of an educational-communicative booklet on humanized childbirth, from a bibliography review, along with subsequent validation by 16 specialists and 100 participants from the target population, in 2020. RESULTS: The specialists scored the booklet with a content validity index (CVI) median of 0.94 and Cronbach's alpha reliability of 0.81. In the target population, the level of positive response ranged between 87% and 100%, with a median of 97.9%. DISCUSSION: Through a literature review and by heeding to writing details, form, and depth, the study managed to elaborate a booklet that showed high CVI to provide education on humanized childbirth to pregnant women and relatives. Study strengths included process rigor, pollster suitability, and simple size. The principal weakness is that information collection was carried out in health institutions. CONCLUSIONS: The booklet elaborated is valid to guarantee understanding, by mothers and their relatives, of humanized childbirth. It is considered relevant and innovative material to educate on this theme, as an impacting event in the lives of the mother-child binomial and their family

Using the Nursing Interventions Classification to identify nursing interventions in free-text nursing documentation in adult psychiatric outpatient care setting.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To identify and describe nursing interventions in patient documentation in adult psychiatric outpatient setting and to explore the potential for using the Nursing Interventions Classification in documentation in this setting. BACKGROUND: Documentation is an important part of nurses' work, and in the psychiatric outpatient care setting, it can be time-consuming. Only very few research reports are available on nursing documentation in this care setting. METHODS: A qualitative analysis of secondary data consisting of nursing documentation for 79 patients in four outpatient units (years 2016-2017). The data consisted of 1,150 free-text entries describing a contact or an attempted contact with 79 patients, their family members or supporting networks and 17 nursing care summaries. Deductive and inductive content analysis was used. SRQR guideline was used for reporting. RESULTS: We identified 71 different nursing interventions, 64 of which are described in the Nursing Interventions Classification. Surveillance and Care Coordination were the most common interventions. The analysis revealed two perspectives which challenge the use of the classification: the problem of overlapping interventions and the difficulty of naming group-based interventions. CONCLUSION: There is an urgent need to improve patient documentation in the adult psychiatric outpatient care setting, and standardised nursing terminologies such as the Nursing Interventions Classification could be a solution to this. However, the problems of overlapping interventions and naming group-based interventions suggest that the classification needs to be further developed before it can fully support the systematic documentation of nursing interventions in the psychiatric outpatient care setting. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: This study describes possibilities of using a systematic nursing language to describe the interventions nurses use in the adult psychiatric outpatient setting. It also describes problems in the current free text-based documentation.

Prevalencia hospitalaria de lesiones relacionadasa con la dependencia de la provincia de Burgos. Estudio multicéntrico / Hospital prevalence of dependence-related lesion in the province of Burgos. Multicenter study

OBJETIVO: Determinar la prevalencia hospitalaria de lesiones relacionadas con la dependencia (LRD) en la provincia de Burgos. Determinar las características de las LRD. Identificar las valoraciones del riesgo de padecer lesión por presión (LPP) y el uso de dispositivos de prevención de LPP. Cuantificar los registros de enfermería de LRD. METODOLOGÍA: Estudio observacional, descriptivo, transversal y multicéntrico, realizado mediante observación directa y revisión de la historia clínica de adultos ingresados en unidades de hospitalización. Realizado en tres hospitales de Burgos en 2018. RESULTADOS: La población sumó 511 pacientes; presentaron LRD: 188. Se detectaron 328 LRD: 176 (53,65%) LPP, 48 (14,63%) lesiones por humedad, 81 (24,69%) lesiones por fricción, 11 (3,35%) lesiones combinadas y 12 (3,65%) lesiones multicausales. Las LPP de categoría 1 fueron las más numerosas, sumando un 35,36%. El 78,96% de las LRD se consideraron adquiridas en el hospital. La prevalencia de LRD es del 36,79%. Las prevalencias por tipos de LRD son: LPP 20,93%, lesiones por humedad 9%, fricción 12,72%, combinadas 1,76% y multicausales 1,56%. El 35,61% de los pacientes presentaba algún tipo de dispositivo preventivo; el 60,07% presentaba valoración del riesgo de padecer LPP; el 30,31% presentaba registro de la lesión, y el 18,37% contaba con plan de cuidados específico. CONCLUSIONES: La prevalencia e LRD, obtenida por inspección directa, cuadruplica los resultados nacionales, pero parece reflejar con mayor exactitud la realidad que los datos obtenidos mediante los registros de enfermería. Es aconsejable universalizar la valoración del riesgo de padecer LPP a todos los pacientes, la mejora de los registros de enfermería y reforzar los esfuerzos preventivos

AIM: To determine the hospital prevalence of dependence-related lesions (DRL) in the province of Burgos. Determine the characteristics of the DRL. Identify the risk assessments of pressure ulcer (PU) and the use of PU prevention devices. Quantify the DRL nursing records. METHODOLOGY: Observational, descriptive, cross-sectional and multicenter study, performed through direct observation and review of the health record of adults admitted to hospitalization units. RESULTS: The population totaled 511 patients, of wich 188 presented DRL. 328 DRL were detected: 176 (53.65%) PU, 48 (14.63%) moisture lesions, 81 (24,69%) friction lesions, 11 (3.35%) combined lesions, and 12 (3.65%) multifactorial lesions. The most numerous was PU category 1 totaling 35.36%. 78.96% of the DRL were determined to be hospital acquired. The prevalence of DRL is 36.79%. The prevalences for DRL types are: PU 20.93%, moisture lesions 9%, friction 12.72%, combined 1.76% and multifactorial 1.56%. 35.61% of patients had some type of preventive device, 60.07% had a risk assessment for PU, 30.31% had a record of the lesion and 18.37% had a specific care plan. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of DRL, obtained by direct inspection, quadruples national results, but it seems to be more accurate than the data obtained through nursing records. It is advisable to universalize the assessment of the risk of suffering PU to all patients, to improve nursing records and to reinforce preventive efforts

Introducing standardised care plans as a new recording tool in municipal health care.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To explore how nurses use standardised care plans as a new recording tool in municipal health care, and to identify their thoughts and opinions. BACKGROUND: In spite of being an important information source for nurses, care plans have repeatedly been found unsatisfactory. Structuring and coding information through standardised care plans is expected to raise the quality of recorded information, improve overviews, support evidence-based practice and facilitate data aggregation. Previous research on this topic has mostly focused on the hospital setting. There is a lack of knowledge on how standardised care plans are used as a recording tool in the municipal healthcare setting. DESIGN: An exploratory design with a qualitative approach using three qualitative methods of data collection. The study complied with the Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research. METHODS: Empirical data were collected in three Norwegian municipalities through participant observation and individual interviews with 17 registered nurses. In addition, we collected nursing records from 20 electronic patient records. RESULTS: Use of standardised care plans was influenced by the nurses' consideration of their benefits. Partial implementation created an opportunity for nonuse. There was no consensus regarding how much information to include, and the standardised care plans could become both short and generic, and long and comprehensive. The themes "balancing between the old and the new care planning system," "considering the usefulness of standardised care plans as a source of information" and "balancing between overview and detail" reflect these findings. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses' use of standardised care plans was influenced by the plans' partial implementation, their views on usefulness and their personal views on the detail required in a care plan. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The structuring of nursing records is a fast-growing trend in health care. This study gives valuable information for those attempting to implement such structures in municipal health care.

Use of electronic health records and standardized terminologies: A nationwide survey of nursing staff experiences.

BACKGROUND: Nursing documentation could improve the quality of nursing care by being an important source of information about patients' needs and nursing interventions. Standardized terminologies (e.g. NANDA International and the Omaha System) are expected to enhance the accuracy of nursing documentation. However, it remains unclear whether nursing staff actually feel supported in providing nursing care by the use of electronic health records that include standardized terminologies. OBJECTIVES: a. To explore which standardized terminologies are being used by nursing staff in electronic health records. b. To explore to what extent they feel supported by the use of electronic health records. c. To examine whether the extent to which nursing staff feel supported is associated with the standardized terminologies that they use in electronic health records. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey design. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A representative sample of 667 Dutch registered nurses and certified nursing assistants working with electronic health records. The respondents were working in hospitals, mental health care, home care or nursing homes. METHODS: A web-based questionnaire was used. Descriptive statistics were performed to explore which standardized terminologies were used by nursing staff, and to explore the extent to which nursing staff felt supported by the use of electronic health records. Multiple linear regression analyses examined the association between the extent of the perceived support provided by electronic health records and the use of specific standardized terminologies. RESULTS: Only half of the respondents used standardized terminologies in their electronic health records. In general, nursing staff felt most supported by the use of electronic health records in their nursing activities during the provision of care. Nursing staff were often not positive about whether the nursing information in the electronic health records was complete, relevant and accurate, and whether the electronic health records were user-friendly. No association was found between the extent to which nursing staff felt supported by the electronic health records and the use of specific standardized terminologies. CONCLUSIONS: More user-friendly designs for electronic health records should be developed. The poor user-friendliness of electronic health records and the variety of ways in which software developers have integrated standardized terminologies might explain why these terminologies had less of an impact on the extent to which nursing staff felt supported by the use of electronic health records.

Documentation of the nursing process in public health institutions. / Documentação do processo de enfermagem em instituições públicas de saúde.

OBJECTIVE: To identify the prevalence of nursing process documentation in hospitals and outpatient clinics administered by the São Paulo State Department of Health. METHOD: A descriptive study conducted through interviews with nurses responsible for 416 sectors of 40 institutions on the documentation of four phases of the Nursing Process (data collection, diagnosis, prescription and evaluation) and nursing annotations. RESULTS: Of the 416 sectors studied, 89.9% documented at least one phase; 56.0% documented the four phases; 4.3% only documented nursing annotations; 5.8% did not document any phase, nor did the nursing notes. The types of sectors which were less documented were: ambulatory, diagnostic support, surgical center and obstetric center; while the ones which were most documented included: intensive care units, emergency rooms and hospitalization units. The data collection and diagnosis were the least documented phases, both in 78.8% of the sectors. CONCLUSION: Most of the studied sectors document the Nursing Process and do nursing annotations, but there are sectors where documentation does not meet formal requirements. The viability of documentation of all the Nursing Process phases in certain types of sectors needs to be better studied.

Diseño y validación de un nuevo registro clínico de enfermería, para la continuidad de los cuidados y seguridad del paciente en hemodiálisis / Design and validation of a new nursing clinical registry for the continuity of care and patient safety in hemodialysis

Introducción: Diseñar y Validar una herramienta para la mejora del proceso de atención en enfermería en una unidad de hemodiálisis de un hospital de segundo nivel. Material y Método: Se desarrolló un estudio de mejora de la calidad de la atención, en el Hospital General Regional nº 1 "Vicente Guerrero" en Guerrero, (México), entre mayo-agosto de 2017. Se modificó la hoja de registros clínicos de enfermería de la unidad de hemodiálisis en dos etapas. Para la etapa de diseño se realizó un grupo focal con expertos y para la validación de contenido se aplicó el método Delphi. Los datos recolectados se procesaron y analizaron en el programa estadístico SPSS V.22. Resultados: El 70% de los expertos consideró el instrumento como bueno en cuanto a la calidad del registro. Hubo una discrepancia en el diseño encontrándose como parcialmente eficiente (70%) ya que cada experto evaluó de acuerdo al área que dominaba. Se incorporaron todas las observaciones realizadas en el diseño final. Conclusión: El instrumento se considera válido, proporcionando información adecuada del paciente previo al tratamiento hemodialítico, lo cual satisface los requerimientos legales respecto a la continuidad de los cuidados

Objective: To design and validate a tool for improving nursing care process in a hemodialysis unit of a secondary level hospital. Material and Method: A quality improvement study was developed at Regional General Hospital N°1 Vicente Guerrero in Guerrero, Mexico, between may-august 2017. Hemodialysis nurse clinical record sheet was modified in two stages. For the design stage, a focus group with experts was carried out and for content validation, Delphi method was applied. The collected data were processed and analyzed with statistics program SPSS V.22. Results: 70% of experts considered the instrument as good in terms of quality of the record. There was a discrepancy in the design, considered partially efficient (70%), since each expert evaluated according the area that dominated. All the observations made were included in the final design. Conclusion: The instrument is valid, giving the right information about the patient prior to hemodialysis, satisfying legal requirements regarding the continuity of care

Implementing mandatory early warning scoring impacts nurses' practice of documenting free text notes.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To evaluate whether implementing the Modified Early Warning Scoring system impacts nurses' free text notes related to Airway, Breathing, Circulation and Pain in general ward medical and surgical patients. BACKGROUND: The quality of nursing documentation in patient health records is important to secure patient safety, but faces multiple challenges whether being paper-based or electronic. Nurses' ability to draw a complete picture of the patient situation is thereby compromised. Structured use of the Modified Early Warning Score, found to reduce unexpected death, might affect nurses' free text documentation of clinical observations. DESIGN: A prospective, pre- and postinterventional, nonrandomised study adhering to the EQUATOR guideline TREND. METHODS: Data on nurses' free text notes were obtained in 1,497 patient records during one preinterventional (March-June 2009) and two postinterventional study periods (September-December 2010 and March-June 2011) in a Danish university hospital. Data were organised by the Airway, Breathing and Circulation principles and by nurses' working shifts in the 56 hr surrounding the first recording of deviating vital parameters or a Modified Early Warning Score ≥ 2. Preinterventional free text notes were compared with notes from the two postinterventional periods, respectively. RESULTS: In the 8-hr working shift where deviations in vital parameters were recorded for the first time, nurses' free text notes related to patients' breathing (B) increased significantly, comparing 2009 with 2010 and 2011, respectively. In the 24 hr following initial deviations in vital parameters, a significant increase in free text notes was identified concerning Airway, Breathing and Circulation-related symptoms or problems. CONCLUSION: Mandatory use of the Modified Early Warning Score and related implementation activities significantly impacts nursing documentation of free text notes. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Nurses' practice of communicating observed clinical symptoms by documenting free text notes should be supported through measures to enhance situation awareness.

[Project for Promoting the Completeness of Electronic Dialysis Nursing Records].

BACKGROUND & PROBLEMS: Obtaining complete electronic dialysis nursing records, a tool that facilitates communication between medical teams, is critical in terms of maintaining the continuity of nursing procedures and nursing quality. An analysis of our unit indicated that nurses lacked sufficient familiarity with electronic dialysis nursing record systems. Moreover, they received insufficient training in operating these systems and lacked the guidelines necessary to maintain these records properly. Furthermore, these systems tend to be poorly designed, and an inspection system for dialysis nursing records is currently unavailable. These factors led to a rate of record completeness of only 58.2%. PURPOSE: To raise the rate of completeness for electronic nursing records to above 90%. RESOLUTION: An intervention was conducted to accomplish seven tasks. These tasks included: modify the electronic dialysis nursing record system, input preset phrases in order to facilitate record compilation in the system, devise a manual to instruct staff on recordkeeping procedures, organize in-service training on system operations, conduct clinical scenario simulations for nurses to practice operating the system, recruit informatics nurses to teach other nurses about the operations, and implement an inspection system for these electronic records. RESULTS: After implementing the intervention, the rate of completeness for electronic nursing records improved to 96% and the average time required for nurses to complete a nursing record decreased from 21 mins 35 s to 8 mins 15 s. CONCLUSIONS: The developed intervention significantly improved the completeness of electronic nursing records, reduced the time required for recordkeeping, and ensured adequate nursing quality for dialysis patients.

Using a Text Mining Approach to Explore the Recording Quality of a Nursing Record System.

BACKGROUND: Most nursing records in Taiwan have been computerized, resulting in a large amount of unstructured text data. The quality of these records has rarely been discussed. PURPOSE: This study used a text mining method to analyze the quality of a nursing record system to establish an auditing model and associated tools for nursing records, with the ultimate objective of improving the quality of electronic nursing records. METHODS: This study utilized a retrospective method to collect the electronic nursing records of 6,277 patients who had been discharged from the internal medicine departments of a medical center in northern Taiwan from January to June 2014. SAS Enterprise Guide Version 6.1 and SAS Text Miner Version 13.2 software were used to perform text mining. Nursing experts were invited to examine the electronic nursing records. The text mining results were compared against a benchmark that was developed by the experts, and the efficiency of SAS Text Miner was examined using the criteria of specificity, sensitivity, and accuracy. RESULTS: In this study, 27,356 nurse-formulated events were used in the analysis. The results of the nurse-formulated events showed an 8.08% similar error with system-formulated events, 29.72% were identified as necessary and appropriate names, 17.53% were retained, 10.15% involved error event names, and 34.52% were not classified. In this study, the sensitivity of SAS text mining in the training (testing) data set was 96% (95%), and the specificity and accuracy were both 99% (99%). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study show that text mining is an effective approach to auditing the quality of electronic nursing records. SAS Text Miner software was shown to identify inappropriate nursing record content quickly and efficiently. Furthermore, the results of this study may be included in in-service education teaching materials to promote the writing of better nursing records to improve the quality of electronic nursing records.

Quality criteria, instruments, and requirements for nursing documentation: A systematic review of systematic reviews.

AIM: To obtain an overview of existing evidence on quality criteria, instruments, and requirements for nursing documentation. DESIGN: Systematic review of systematic reviews. DATA SOURCES: We systematically searched the databases PubMed and CINAHL for the period 2007-April 2017. We also performed additional searches. REVIEW METHODS: Two reviewers independently selected the reviews using a stepwise procedure, assessed the methodological quality of the selected reviews, and extracted the data using a predefined extraction format. We performed descriptive synthesis. RESULTS: Eleven systematic reviews were included. Several quality criteria were described referring to the importance of following the nursing process and using standardized nursing terminologies. In addition, some evidence-based instruments were described for assessing the quality of nursing documentation, such as the D-Catch. Furthermore, several requirements for formats and systems of electronic nursing documentation were found that refer to the importance of user-friendliness and development in consultation with nursing staff. CONCLUSION: Aligning documentation with the nursing process, using standard terminologies, and using user-friendly formats and systems appear to be important for high-quality nursing documentation. The lack of evidence-based quality indicators presents a challenge in the pursuit of high-quality nursing documentation. IMPACT: There is uncertainty in nursing practice about which criteria have to be met to achieve high-quality documentation. Aligning documentation with the nursing process, using standard terminologies, and using user-friendly formats and systems appear to be important. These findings can help nursing staff and care organizations enhance the quality of nursing documentation.

Pain process of patients with cardiac surgery-Semantic annotation of electronic patient record data.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To describe and compare the pain process of the patients' with cardiac surgery through nurses' and physicians' documentations in the electronic patient records. BACKGROUND: Postoperative pain assessment and management should be documented regularly, to ensure optimal pain care process for patients. Despite availability of evidence-based guidelines, pain assessment and documentation remain inadequate. DESIGN: A retrospective patients' record review. METHODS: The original data consisted of the electronic patient records of 26,922 patients with a diagnosed heart disease. A total of 1,818 care episodes of patients with cardiac surgery were selected from the data. We used random sampling to obtain 280 care episodes for annotation. These 280 care episodes contained 2,156 physician reports and 1,327 days of nursing notes. We developed an annotation manual and schema, and then, we manually conducted semantic annotation on care episodes, using the Brat annotation tool. We analysed the annotation units using thematic analysis. Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research guideline was followed in reporting where appropriate in this study design. RESULTS: We discovered expressions of six different aspects of pain process: (a) cause, (b) situation, (c) features, (d) consequences, (e) actions and (f) outcomes. We determined that five of the aspects existed chronologically. However, the features of pain were simultaneously existing. They indicated the location, quality, intensity, and temporality of the pain and they were present in every phase of the patient's pain process. Cardiac and postoperative pain documentations differed from each other in used expressions and in the quantity and quality of descriptions. CONCLUSION: We could construct a comprehensive pain process of the patients with cardiac surgery from several electronic patient records. The challenge remains how to support systematic documentation in each patient. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: The study provides knowledge and guidance of pain process aspects that can be used to achieve an effective pain assessment and more comprehensive documentation.

Effectiveness of a computerised system of patient education in clinical practice: a longitudinal nested cohort study.

INTRODUCTION: Developing electronic health record information systems is an international trend for promoting the integration of health information and enhancing the quality of medical services. Patient education is a frequent intervention in nursing care, and recording the amount and quality of patient education have become essential in the nursing record. The aims of this study are (1): to develop a high-quality Patient Education Assessment and Description Record System (PEADRS) in the electronic medical record (2); to examine the effectiveness of the PEADRS on documentation and nurses' satisfaction (3); to facilitate communication and cooperation between professionals. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A quasi-experimental design and random sampling will be used. The participants are nurses who are involved in patient education by using traditional record or the PEADRS at a medical centre. A prospective longitudinal nested cohort study will be conducted to compare the effectiveness of the PEADRS, including (1): the length of nursing documentation (2); satisfaction with using the PEADRS; and (3) the benefit to professional cooperation. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Patient privacy will be protected according to Electronic Medical Record Management Practices of the hospital. This study develops a patient education digital record system, which would profit the quality of clinical practice in health education. The results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and will be presented at scientific conferences.

Getting and Giving Report.

: This column is designed to help new nurses in their first year at the bedside-a time of insecurity, growth, and constant challenges-and to offer advice as they learn what it means to be a nurse. This article offers strategies new nurses can use and specific steps they can take to help them succeed in both giving and receiving report.

Traslado interhospitalario de pacientes con balón de contrapulsación intraaórtico / Transfer between hospitals of patients with intra-aortic balloon counterpulsation

El balón de contrapulsación intraaórtico (BCIA) es un dispositivo utilizado para dar soporte circulatorio a pacientes en los que el tratamiento convencional no es efectivo, para garantizar su estabilidad clínica hasta que puedan recibir el tratamiento adecuado en un centro hospitalario. En algunos casos, los pacientes necesitan este dispositivo mientras son trasladados al centro de destino. Aunque este tipo de situaciones sea poco frecuente, su alta complejidad, la gravedad del paciente y la especificidad del manejo técnico del aparataje, hace necesario contar con los conocimientos suficientes sobre los cuidados de Enfermería que necesita este tipo de pacientes para evitar las complicaciones que puedan surgir durante el traslado interhospitalario

The intra-aortic balloon contrapulsation (IABC) is a method used for circulatory support in patients for whom standard treatment has not been effective, in order to guarantee their clinical stability until they can receive adequate treatment at hospital. In some cases, patients need this device during their transfer to the destination centre. Even though this type of situations is not frequent, their high complexity, patient severity and the specificity of the technical management of devices demand having enough knowledge about the Nursing Care required by this type of patients, in order to prevent any complications arising during their transfer between hospitals

Implementación de círculos de calidad para la mejora del registro de Enfermería / Implementation of quality control circles for the improvement of nursing records

El registro de Enfermería es una herramienta que facilita la recolección y consulta de datos para el desarrollo de planes de cuidados, el intercambio de información y como medio de referencia. Sin embargo, por factores asociados a la labor de Enfermería no siempre cumplen con todos los estándares, incluido los de índole legal. El propósito de este trabajo es dar a conocer cómo se llevó a cabo un proceso de mejora de la calidad del registro de Enfermería de un hospital público, sobre todo, en los aspectos relacionados con el cumplimiento de la normativa institucional. Para ello, se definieron enfermeros líderes del método que se iba a usar mediante el establecimiento de círculos de calidad, quienes recibieron capacitación, asesoría y seguimiento durante todo el proceso. Paralelamente se incluyeron otros profesionales enfermeros que formarían parte de estos círculos de calidad. Por otro lado, cada líder pudo identificar áreas de mejora, que conllevaron actividades orientadas a la mejora del registro de Enfermería. Al final del proceso, participaron 31 enfermeras y enfermeros (siete líderes y 24 integrantes del círculo), de los 51 que eran responsables de la cumplimentación de los registros (participación del 61%), distribuidos en siete círculos de calidad, consiguiendo una mejora del 75% respecto a la cumplimentación de calidad de los registros. Sin duda, para favorecer el cumplimiento de este objetivo se requirió, no solo la capacitación de los profesionales en la mejora de la ejecución de los registros, sino también su participación constante y un alto grado de compromiso y responsabilidad. En esta ocasión el uso de los círculos de calidad fue una metodología pertinente y factible en la detección de áreas de mejora en beneficio de la organización

Nursing record is a tool which facilitates data collection and search for the development of care plans, information exchange, and as information and means of reference. However, due to factors associated with the nursing job, these records won’t always meet all standards, including those of legal nature. The objective of this article is to provide information about the manner in which a process for improving the quality of nursing records was conducted in a public hospital, mostly regarding those aspects associated with meeting the institutional rules. To this aim, there was a determination of nurses leading the method that would be used, through the implementation of quality control circles; these nurses received training, counselling, and follow-up throughout the process. At the same time, other nursing professionals were included, who would form part of these quality control circles. On the other hand, each leader could identify areas for improvement, which entailed activities orientated to an improvement in nursing records. At the end of the process, 31 male and female nurses were involved (seven leaders and 24 circle members), of the 51 nurses who were responsible for record completion (61% participation), distributed into seven quality control circles, and achieving a 75% improvement regarding the quality of record completion. Undoubtedly, meeting this objective not only required the training of professionals on the improvement of record execution, but also their constant involvement, and a high level of commitment and responsibility. In this occasion, the use of quality control circles was a relevant and feasible methodology for detecting areas for improvement that would benefit the organization

Quality of nursing documentation: Paper-based health records versus electronic-based health records.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: To assess and compare the quality of paper-based and electronic-based health records. The comparison examined three criteria: content, documentation process and structure. BACKGROUND: Nursing documentation is a significant indicator of the quality of patient care delivery. It can be either paper-based or organised within the system known as the electronic health records. Nursing documentation must be completed at the highest standards, to ensure the safety and quality of healthcare services. However, the evidence is not clear on which one of the two forms of documentation (paper-based versus electronic health records is more qualified. METHODS: A retrospective, descriptive, comparative design was used to address the study's purposes. A convenient number of patients' records, from two public hospitals, were audited using the Cat-ch-Ing audit instrument. The sample size consisted of 434 records for both paper-based health records and electronic health records from medical and surgical wards. RESULTS: Electronic health records were better than paper-based health records in terms of process and structure. In terms of quantity and quality content, paper-based records were better than electronic health records. The study affirmed the poor quality of nursing documentation and lack of nurses' knowledge and skills in the nursing process and its application in both paper-based and electronic-based systems. CONCLUSION: Both forms of documentation revealed drawbacks in terms of content, process and structure. This study provided important information, which can guide policymakers and administrators in identifying effective strategies aimed at enhancing the quality of nursing documentation. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE: Policies and actions to ensure quality nursing documentation at the national level should focus on improving nursing knowledge, competencies, practice in nursing process, enhancing the work environment and nursing workload, as well as strengthening the capacity building of nursing practice to improve the quality of nursing care and patients' outcomes.