ABSTRACT
Competency validation from initial entry through continued employment is essential to ensure nursing personnel provide safe professional practice. With hospital mergers it becomes quickly apparent that varying methodologies for competency verification exist. Nursing staff educators need a system-wide competency program to ensure a single high standard for the entire healthcare network. This article addresses one healthcare network's response to the challenge of developing and implementing a standardized competency-based program across a wide variety of settings.
Subject(s)
Clinical Competence , Health Facility Merger , Nursing Staff/education , Staff Development/organization & administration , Educational Measurement/methods , Humans , Nursing Staff/standards , Ohio , Program Evaluation , Teaching/methodsABSTRACT
The lack of support for spontaneous bearing down versus directed pushing efforts, varying opinions on the determination of readiness for pushing, and the prevailing use of prolonged breath holding associated with pushing during labor are aspects of second-stage labor management that continue to be areas of contention among physicians and nurses. A discussion of current practice outcomes surrounding these controversies from the AWHONN Second Stage Labor Research Utilization Project conducted in 1994-1995 is presented in view of the available research literature. In addition, recommendations for future nursing research are identified.
