Question

You are a nurse manager on this same very busy unit. One of your nursing staff’s biggest dissatisfiers is fatigue, particularly for staff who work night shift. You know that the practice council is working on a “sleep break” program. In the meantime, what can you, the nurse manager, do to reduce staff fatigue and make the workplace safer for both the nurses and the patients? Remember to make your plan economically sustainable as well. Try to keep your postings to approximately 150 to 300 words. Include at least one reference (citation should not be more than 5 years old) for your discussion.

Answer 1

NURSE FATIGUE AND ITS PREVENTION

As healthcare professional demand increases, workload also increase in the unit. Due that nurses have to work long hours, rotatory shifts and night shift leads to nursing fatigue which increase the risk of mistake, error and accidents in the hospital setup or in their personal life.

For example – a nurse working in the ICU unit, with 3 consecutive night shift. Physician order her to set morphine infusion pump at a rate for patient 66pound weight. Due to the nurse fatigue she forgets to convert the 66pound into KG and set rate according to pound. Will leads to error in the practice and risk increase for patient life.

- Nurse manager is having core responsibility to provide satisfaction, safety to employee and their patient with under the budget.

- Nurse manager should provide opportunity staff to express their concern about fatigue and open a discussion for it.

- Nurses should be motivated to bring substantial changes in their faulty behavior like end time charting, always in the hurry etc.

- Help them in scheduling their time table (like before coming for shift should have adequate rest and sleep for prevention of error).

- For extended shift should provide break and rest in it.

- Should recommend power nap and rest break for prevention of nurse fatigue after patient care(short nap brings good result in night shift and makes the nurses more alert).

- Asses patient- nurse ration.

- Encourage the employee to organized and plan before next shift to reduce exhaustion and long shift hours as planning helps in time management. Should promote healthy working environment.

- Safe and flexible nursing scheduling. Educate them about sleep hygiene, get sound sleep of minimum 6 hours, have a good diet and exercise schedule.

These will help in reduction of nurse fatigue and budget friendly.

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