Question

Discuss the importance of advocacy as it pertains to patient care. What is the nurse's role in patient advocacy? Describe a situation in which you were involved with patient advocacy. Explain what the advocacy accomplished for the patient, and what the repercussions would have been if the patient would not have had an advocate?

Answer 1

#. In order to determine the advocacy needs of the client, the nurse must assess the following

Client's ability to cooperate and make decisions

Reliability of information provided by the client, especially if the client exhibits impairment of cognitive function or mental instability

Client's medical history and family situation

Based on the nurse's assessment of the client, advocacy interventions may include:

Educating clients and their families about their legal rights

Monitoring treatment planning and delivery of service for the abuse of client rights

Evaluating policies and procedures regarding infringement of client rights

Ensuring that clients have the necessary information to make an informed decision or give informed consent

Questioning other healthcare professionals when they provide care that is based on stereotypic ideas rather than on assessment of the individual client's needs

Speaking out for safe practice conditions when threatened by budget cutback

Types of Advocacy: Empowerment

Nurses advocate for clients in order to protect their rights and empower them to participate in making informed healthcare decisions.

Types of Advocacy: Enabling

Enabling is defined as "facilitating the other's passage through life transitions and unfamiliar events."1

Enabling includes:

Coaching

Informing

Explaining

Assisting

Guiding

Focusing

Validating

Types of Advocacy: Four Dimensions of Advocacy

there are four dimensions of advocacy when the nurse is caring for a client.2

Being a client advocate

Following through or following up

Providing resources

Going above and beyond

Types of Advocacy: Educating Providers and Others

Advocacy in this situation involves educating healthcare providers so that they are able to provide appropriate care to their clients

Types of Advocacy: Professional & Public Domains

Both individual nurses and professional organizations have many opportunities to:

Speak publically for the health, welfare, and safety of their clients

Take steps to protect client rights

Inform the public about issues and concerns through articles and other media

Lobby their congressional representatives on behalf of better health care for all people

Run for political office

Types of Advocacy: Illegal, Immoral, or Unethical Activities of Professionals.

Nurses have a legal responsibility to report other professionals suspected of engaging in illegal, immoral, or unethical activities by following established procedures at the facility of employment.

#. Situation where I was involved as a patients advocate :

It was case of a patient who was brought to the causality with burns at my night duty . It was a 18 year old girl and it was a case of assault. After shifting the patient to the ICU ,some of the persons who haven't showed their identity came forcefully to the emergency and asked about the girls condition. It was smelling something wrong and I refused to tell them the patient details being an advocate and reported to the security authorities of the hospital and they were taken to the police station .

If I have done this they might have cause some harm to the patient as they were involved in the misconduct of throwing acid on her .