Developing organizational policies and practices.

Assignment: Developing Organizational Policies and Practices Competing needs arise within any organization as employees seek to meet their targets and leaders seek to meet company goals. As a leader, successful management of these goals requires establishing priorities and allocating resources accordingly.Developing organizational policies and practices. Within a healthcare setting, the needs of the workforce, resources, and patients are often in conflict. Mandatory overtime, implementation of staffing ratios, use of unlicensed assisting personnel, and employer reductions of education benefits are examples of practices that might lead to conflicting needs in practice.Developing organizational policies and practices.

ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HERE

Leaders can contribute to both the problem and the solution through policies, action, and inaction. In this Assignment, you will further develop the white paper you began work on in Module 1 by addressing competing needs within your organization. To Prepare: Review the national healthcare issue/stressor you examined in your Assignment for Module 1, and review the analysis of the healthcare issue/stressor you selected.Developing organizational policies and practices. Identify and review two evidence-based scholarly resources that focus on proposed policies/practices to apply to your selected healthcare issue/stressor. Reflect on the feedback you received from your colleagues on your Discussion post regarding competing needs.Developing organizational policies and practices. The Assignment (4-5 pages): Developing Organizational Policies and Practices Add a section to the paper you submitted in Module 1. The new section should address the following: Identify and describe at least two competing needs impacting your selected healthcare issue/stressor. Describe a relevant policy or practice in your organization that may influence your selected healthcare issue/stressor. Critique the policy for ethical considerations, and explain the policy’s strengths and challenges in promoting ethics. Recommend one or more policy or practice changes designed to balance the competing needs of resources, workers, and patients, while addressing any ethical shortcomings of the existing policies. Be specific and provide examples. Cite evidence that informs the healthcare issue/stressor and/or the policies, and provide two scholarly resources in support of your policy or practice recommendations. *I will send a message attaching the paper submitted from Module 1.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Introduction

Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) are on a continuous rise regardless of the current healthcare advances. High mortality and morbidity rates have been associated with these infections which have also elevated the cost of care in the United States(Zhong et al., 2020).The most common HAIs include Catheter-associated urinary tract infections, surgical site infections, bloodstream infections, pneumonia and clostridium difficile.Catheter-acquired urinary tract infections (CAUTI) was the healthcare stressor identified in Module 1 assignment. They result from multiple individual factors and interrelated behaviors. More often than not, they area caused by unnecessary use, poor insertion techniques that introduce microbes, and prolonged stay of the catheter for a long time, which promotes the movement of bacteria from the catheter to the bladder, and eventually to the circulation (Ding et al., 2019).Developing organizational policies and practices.

CAUTIs present devastating health effects including organ dysfunctions and eventual death of a patient. According to Podkovik et al. (2019), the United States loses at least 13,000 persons annually to these disorders despite them being preventable. They are caused by biofilm (collection of microbes) that forms on the surface of the urinary catheter. This process starts immediately after the insertion of the catheter, and the risk of CAUTI elevates with the prolonged stay of the catheter (Pelling et al., 2019).Developing organizational policies and practices.

In my organization, the rate of HAIs and particularly CAUTIs is relatively high. The presence of CAUTIs leads to the organization experiencing punitive financial losses and a reduction in reimbursement for healthcare services. The rate of CAUTIs within the organization is relatively higher than the national benchmark. The organization experiences increased healthcare costs due to costs associated with the treatment of the infection as well as prolonged length of hospital stay. According to the infection control nurse at the organization, even though the number of CAUTIs in the first and second quarter was negligible, the number of the CAUTI cases in the last 12 months was above the national benchmark.  This indicates the importance of addressing the issue.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Competing Needs

CAUTI prevention can be achieved through ensuring that the healthcare providers adhere to the CAUTI prevention bundle. This can be achieved by increasing surveillance and audits for CAUTIs and educating bedside nurses regarding the prevention of CAUTIs(Zhong et al., 2020). Nurse education about the appropriate insertion techniques of urinary catheters is also essential in understanding the latest CAUTI management guidelines and providing supporting materials (Atkins et al., 2020). However, various competing needs impact the selected management of CAUTIs in the organization. These include implementation of staffing ratios and mandatory overtime among others.Developing organizational policies and practices.

The major demand of CAUTI management is the availability of adequate nurse staffing ratios. This means that, an appropriate nurse number with suitable skill, education and experience is available every time across the care continuum. This makes sure that the patient care needs are timely met. It also ensures that the conditions and environment of working supports the delivery of quality care by the staff. As at present, the organization is struggling with inadequate healthcare providers resulting from the increased demands and needs of patients attributed to the rising number of HAIs and particularly CAUTIs. The means that for successful and effective management of CAUTIs, the organization must increase its staffing ratios to levels that can comfortably meet the quality standards of CAUTI prevention bundle and as well allow efficient shifts and scheduling of nurses for the purpose of prevention training and education attendance without overloading the staff(Zhong et al., 2020).

Another conflicting need within the organization is mandatory overtime. The average recommended work time for nurses is usually 36 to 40 hours in a week. Any work time above this is considered overtime and can be from as little as one hour or a replacement of a shift. Mandatory overtime is warranted an overtime pay according to the Fair Labor Standard Overtime Laws (FLSA). However, some registered nurses are exempted from these benefits based on their salary and job description. Considering the impending nursing shortage challenge in the organization, mandatory overtime is a common occurrence experienced by nurses to meet the ever increasing needs of the patients acquiring CAUTIs. The fact that nurses have the right to refuse mandatory overtime or demand for compensation has posed an economic burden to the facility adding to the already existing management challenge with increased needs.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Relevant policy or practice in the organization that may influence the issue

The organization has a policy that allows education benefits to the nurses which is bound to influence the management of CAUTIs. Healthcare providers employed on full time basis are given the opportunity to advance their education by offering them professional development chances that grow their practice and improve the quality of patientcare delivered in the facility.  Diversification is also appreciated in the hospital and the employees are allowed entitled to financial assistance through the staff assistance program. Education benefits for nurses is directly related to job satisfaction. It increases their knowledge, skills and competence as well as experience on disease prevention as they learn new techniques and advanced trends in the healthcare system.

Critique the policy for ethical considerations, explain the policy’s strengths and challenges in promoting ethics

The education benefits policy is influenced by particular ethical issues. These include transparency and justice in allocation whereby, the organization is expected to reimburse the funds in accordance to the set laws and not as per personal relationships. Over the past few years there have been complains related to nepotism in allocation and distribution of the education benefits which is contrary to the eligibility standards of the organization. This demonstrates discrimination and unfair distribution of resources which is against the ethical principle of justice.Developing organizational policies and practices.

The strength of thepolicy is that it provides a professional, personal and academic development for nurses to eventually develop better evidence-based interventions for management and prevention of different problems affecting the healthcare settings. In this case, it allows the development of a solution to the CAUTI problem. This promotes beneficence and prevents harm as per the non-maleficence principle of ethics.  Ethical promotion is challenged by lack of whistleblowers who fear losing their jobs by pointing out unethical practices among their leaders. Developing organizational policies and practices.

Recommended policy or practice changes designed to balance the competing needs of resources, workers and patients while addressing any ethical shortcomings of the existing policies

The competing needs of resources, workers and patients can be balanced through changes in practice. Promotion of ethical practice is an important change that the nurses should adopt to ensure that they call out injustices occurring in their places of work. The hospital can provide a platform for all the stakeholders to air their grievances anonymous and as well call out the persons engaged in unethical practices regardless of their leadership positions in the organization. For instance, the discriminatory allocation of educational benefits can be pointed out through such platforms without exposing the whistleblower which would otherwise risk their job security. The shortcoming of the existing policy is that it does not provide disciplinary measures for those caught violating the policy or using it for their personal gains.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Analysis of a Pertinent Healthcare Issue

Introduction

There are various national healthcare issues or stressors that affect and impact healthcare organizations within the US. All these issues need to be addressed, even though some are more urgent than others. The healthcare problem chosen for this assignment is catheter-acquired urinary tract infections (CAUTI). CAUTIs occur due to multiple factors and interrelated behaviors done by numerous individuals. CAUTI can occur due to unnecessary use, poor insertion technique that introduces microbes, and prolonged stay of the catheter for a long time, which allows bacteria to travel from the catheter to the bladder, and then to the blood (Ding et al., 2019).Developing organizational policies and practices.

National Healthcare Issue/Stressor

Despite the current advances in healthcare, the prevalence of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) continues to rise. HAIs are associated with an increased mortality rate among patients, and they cost the American healthcare system billions of dollars annually (Zhong et al., 2020). CAUTIs are among the most common kind of HAIs, and they are associated with death and organ dysfunction. Even though CAUTIs are preventable, they contribute to approximately 13,000 deaths every year in the US (Podkovik et al., 2019). CAUTIs occur from the biofilm (collection of microbes) that forms on the surface of the urinary catheter. This process starts immediately after the insertion of the catheter, and the risk of CAUTI elevates with the prolonged stay of the catheter (Pelling et al., 2019). CAUTIs left untreated could potentially cause death, complications, prolonged length of hospital stay, and increase healthcare costs.Developing organizational policies and practices.

In my organization, the rate of HAIs and particularly CAUTIs is relatively high. The presence of CAUTIs leads to the organization experiencing punitive financial losses and a reduction in reimbursement for healthcare services. The rate of CAUTIs within the organization is relatively higher than the national benchmark. The organization experiences increased healthcare costs due to costs associated with the treatment of the infection as well as prolonged length of hospital stay. According to the infection control nurse at the organization, even though the number of CAUTIs in the first and second quarter was negligible, the number of the CAUTI cases in the last 12 months was above the national benchmark. Thus indicates the importance of addressing the issue.

Summary of the Articles

According to Meneguet et al. (2019), HAIs are a significant public health problem because theyare associated with increased mortality and morbidity, prolonged length of hospital stay, increased healthcare costs, and additional suffering to the patients and their families. Urinary tract infections account for about 40% of all HAIs in the US, and thus CAUTIs are among the most common HAIs in American hospitals (Meneguet et al., 2019). The use of an indwelling urinary catheter is asignificant risk factor for urinary tract infections. Accordingly, CAUTI is the most common type of UTIs, as they cause about 13,000 in the US annually (Meneguet et al., 2019).Developing organizational policies and practices.

According to Atkins et al. (2020), strategies that have shown efficacy in reducing the rate of CAUTI include removal of the catheter as soon as possible, training of the nursing staff, active surveillance on the incidence of CAUTI, and use of the suitable method to insert and maintain the catheter. Atkins et al. (2020) explain that the critical hindrance to the removal of a urinary catheter is the nurses’ perception that severely ill patients need to use the catheter. This perception can be changed through training and promoting the implementation of guidelines and protocols about the indications for the use of an indwelling urinary catheter (Atkins et al., 2020).Healthcare organizations are not reimbursed for costs incurred during the treatment of CAUTI. According to the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services, CAUTIs are preventable when guidelines are adhered to and when the proper techniques are utilized.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Strategies

One of the strategies to reduce the incidence of CAUTIs in the organization is to ensure the healthcare providers adhere to the CAUTI prevention bundle. This can be achieved by increasing surveillance and audits for CAUTIs and educating bedside nurses regarding the prevention of CAUTIs. The findings from Meneguet et al. (2019) indicated that training and daily review of an indication for catheters significantly reduced the rate of CAUTIs in the hospital’s ICU. Nurses received education about the appropriate insertion techniques of urinary catheters. Atkins et al. (2020) also indicate that educating the nurses about the latest CAUTI management guidelines and providing supporting materials to the nursing staff helps to reduce CAUTIs in healthcare organizations.Developing organizational policies and practices.

The positive outcomes in educating nurses about CAUTI and ensuring adequate surveillance and audit of CAUTI in the organization can help in improving patient outcomes, increase the organizational reimbursement from Medicare and reduce the administrative costs by decreasing out of pocket expenses associated with prolonged hospital stays that are not catered by insurance. Also, there is a need to implement policies that support procedures to reduce CAUTIs in the organization. This ensures that all administrative staff follows the guidelines. Moreover, the reduced rate of CAUTI in the organization is likely to gain a positive score in the healthcare industry and also facilitate increased patient satisfaction. Positive improvements in the organization can improve the wellbeing of the nursing staff, resulting in more positive impacts like increased employee retention.Developing organizational policies and practices.

Conclusion

By educating the nursing staff about the reduction of CAUTIs and implementing policies to reduce the rate of CAUTI, the organization sends a message that quality of care and patient safety are priorities in the organization. Reduced rates of CAUTI will help the organization gain positive scores in the healthcare industry and reduce healthcare costs. Even though these investments are likely to cost the organization, the assets will, in the long run, lead to a significant reduction of healthcare costs. Striving to lower the rates of CAUTI is the first step towards attaining improvement at the organization.Developing organizational policies and practices.