ABSTRACT
AIM: To identify factors that influence nurses' practice in apron use during direct patient care. METHOD: A small-scale documentary analysis of a purposive sample of 15 journal articles relating to nurses' apron use during patient care was undertaken. The analysis sought to address what factors affect nurses' decisions in relation to apron use. FINDINGS: Nurses' decisions regarding apron use during patient care tend to be ritualistic rather than evidence-based. Their knowledge of infection control is limited. CONCLUSION: Although there is current literature available on infection control, as well as health and safety regulations, if local policy regarding apron use in nursing care is scant this can result in inconsistent and, perhaps, less desirable practices.
Subject(s)
Infection Control/methods , Nursing , Protective Clothing , Ceremonial Behavior , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Humans , Infection Control/organization & administration , Organizational Policy , SymbolismABSTRACT
Government guidance and policy promotes the use of benchmarks as measures against which practice and care can be measured. This provides the motivation for practitioners to make changes to improve patient care. Adopting a systematic approach, practitioners can implement changes in practice quickly. The process requires motivation and communication between professionals of all disciplines. It provides a forum for sharing good practice and developing a support network. In this article the authors outline the initial steps taken by three PCGs in implementing the benchmarking process as they move towards primary care trust status.
Subject(s)
Benchmarking/organization & administration , Nursing Audit/organization & administration , Quality Assurance, Health Care/organization & administration , Attitude of Health Personnel , Communication , Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice , Humans , Interprofessional Relations , Motivation , Nursing Staff/education , Nursing Staff/psychology , Organizational Innovation , Patient Care Team/organization & administration , Social Support , State Medicine/standards , United KingdomABSTRACT
As part of an ENB educational evaluation of teamworking in mental health, a report-and-respond survey was used as one of five data collection methods. This instrument disseminated earlier findings back to the participants and invited further comments. This article discusses the usefulness of this type of survey as a data collection tool and presents the findings of the survey which was administered to service professionals, educationalist, students, users and carers involved in mental health throughout England. The findings show that when groups of professionals are working within increasingly tight financial constraints and increased workloads, multiprofessional teamworking can be scarce in reality. These tensions present issues for nurse education and training at both pre- and post-registration levels in relation to the teaching of, for and about effective teamwork.
