Why is the nurse still ultimatley responsible for the care that has been delegated to the...

Why is the nurse still ultimatley responsible for the care that has been delegated to the UAP.

Expert Solution

delegation is the process for a nurse to direct another person to perform nursing tasks and activities. Delegation involves at least two individuals: the delegator, and the delegatee. The delegator is a registered nurse who distributes a portion of patient care to the delegatee.

Essential Components of Delegation

Responsibility

Based on individual states’ nurse practice acts, registered nurses have a professional duty to perform patient care tasks dependably and reliably.

Authority

Authority refers to an individual’s ability to complete duties within a specific role. This authority derives from nurse practice acts and organizational policies and job descriptions.

Accountability

Accountability within the nursing context refers to nursing professionals’ legal liability for their actions related to patient care. During delegation, delegators transfer responsibility and authority for completing a task to the delegatee; however, the delegator always maintains accountability for the task's completion. The registered nurse is always accountable for the overall outcome of delegated tasks based on each state's nurse practice act provisions.

Possible legal and ethical constraints arise regarding delegation in nursing. Therefore, the American Nurses Association developed the five rights of delegation to assist nurses in making safe decisions.

Five Rights of Delegation

Right task
Right circumstance
Right person
Right supervision
Right direction and communication

When performing a fundamental skill on the job, the delegatee is considered to be carrying out an assignment. The routine care, activities and procedures assigned are those which would have been included in the delegatee’s basic educational program. A licensed nurse is still responsible for ensuring an assignment is carried out completely and correctly. Delegation is allowing a delegatee to perform a specific nursing activity, skill, or procedure that is beyond the delegatee’s traditional role and not routinely performed. This applies to licensed nurses as well as AP. Regardless of the current role of the delegatee (RN, LPN/ VN or AP), delegation can be summarized as follows: • A delegatee is allowed to perform a specific nursing activity, skill or procedure that is outside the traditional role and basic responsibilities of the delegatee’s current job. • The delegatee has obtained the additional education and training, and validated competence to perform the care/delegated responsibility. The context and processes associated with competency validation will be different for each activity, skill or procedure being delegated. Competency validation should be specific to the knowledge and skill needed to safely perform the delegated responsibility as well as to the level of practitioner (i.e., RN, LPN/VN, AP) to whom the activity, skill or procedure has been delegated. The licensed nurse who delegates the “responsibility” maintains overall accountability for the patient. However, the delegatee bears the responsibility for the delegated activity, skill or procedure.

Nightingale answered 1 year ago

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