Question

Redistributing patients, after a collegue felt sick and went home. What do you do as a charge nurse on the medical surgical floor? The aid is to achieve the set goal. (Patient safety)

Answer 1

Before redistribution of patient to other colleagues it is better to update the team working on floor is sick and needs their cooperation. Though being in higher position of charge nurse who can directly order other staff to take patient. Informing them and making them comfortable to get extra patients improves the quality of services by supporting them.

• Allocate patients equally
• Allocate critical patient to senior or experienced staff
• Handover can be given in front of the charge nurse so that she is also aware of patient conditions
• know about the skills and availability of staff
• Involve the caretaker, nursing assistance or nursing aide to do basic care and update the patient status to RN
• Supervise and support the team
• could attend clinicians round if the staff is busy
• The charge nurse can also provide care to patient in unavoidable situations and when there is staff shortages
• IsIf there is a difficulty in redistributing patients isif the ward is ver busy a help can be asked from the supervisor to provide staffs.