Capstone Change Project Outcomes
After working with your preceptor to assess organizational policies, create a list of measurable outcomes for your capstone project intervention. Write a list of three to five outcomes for your proposed intervention. Below each outcome, provide a one or two-sentence rationale.
The assignment will be used to develop a written implementation plan.
APA style is not required, but solid academic writing is expected.
You are not required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite.
Subject: Nursing/Staffing shortage in long term acute care
Sample Paper
Higher Nurse staffing ratios in the long-term acute care units
Increasing nursing staffing ratios is one of my ideal outcomes for my capstone project. Increasing nursing staffing ratios in the long-term acute care unit can therefore go a long way in increasing the quality of care that residents receive. Higher nurse staffing ratios, therefore, have a direct impact on the quality of care provided in a healthcare facility and are associated with an improvement in patient satisfaction and a reduction in adverse outcomes among patients (Griffiths et al., 2018). Increasing the nurse staffing ratios in the long-term care unit could also go a long way in addressing the nursing staff shortage issue in that healthcare facilities with nursing shortages are more likely to struggle with nurse retention because already available nurses have heavy workloads and are more likely to quit than to continue in the same healthcare facility. Boosting nursing staffing ratios is, therefore, one of the main measurable outcomes for my capstone project intervention (Griffiths et al., 2018).
Low turnover rates of nurses in the long-term acute-care units
Reducing turnover rates is a measurable outcome for my capstone intervention. A reduction in turnover rate in a long-term care unit corresponds with an increase in nursing staff ratios. To effectively boost nursing staff ratios, healthcare facilities have to implement different strategies to reduce turnover rates among nurses, such as providing fair compensation and an opportunity for nurses to grow both personally and professionally. Long-term care units that have low turnover rates are therefore more likely to have high nurse staffing ratios and therefore provide quality services to all patients (Driscoll et al., 2017).
Better opportunities for career advancement and leadership development in the long-term care units
Providing better opportunities for career advancement and leadership development is also a measurable outcome for my capstone intervention. The opportunities which a long-term care unit offers nurses to advance their career and develop their leadership skills can therefore be evaluated and quantified. Long-term care units that provide more opportunities for nurses to advance their careers and develop their leadership skills are likely to have higher retention rates for nurses and enjoy higher nurse staffing ratios and better outcomes for patients. By offering better opportunities for career advancement and leadership development through seminars, workshops, and other strategies, the leaders in long-term care units can therefore be able to cultivate loyalty and more enthusiasm among nurses that work in such units. Studies have indicated that nurses that have more opportunities for career advancement and leadership development in healthcare facilities are less likely to quit and more likely to work for longer periods of time in such units (Sonnino, 2016).
Higher representation of the marginalized community in the long-term care unit
Encouraging a higher representation of marginalized communities in a long-term care unit can go a long way in reducing nursing staff shortages. By setting a certain target of the number of individuals from diverse communities, they recruit long-term care units can therefore effectively encourage a higher representation of diverse communities in the long-term care unit. Enhancing her representation of marginalized communities in the long-term care unit helps to deal with the challenge of nursing shortages in the diverse working environment that has been found to be more conducive for healthcare practitioners. Diverse working places with a higher representation of marginalized communities enjoy a higher retention rate (Montesanti et al., 2016).
References
Driscoll, A., Grant, M. J., Carroll, D., Dalton, S., Deaton, C., Jones, I., Lehwaldt, D., McKee, G., Munyombwe, T., & Astin, F. (2017). The effect of nurse-to-patient ratios on nurse-sensitive patient outcomes in acute specialist units: a systematic review and meta-analysis. European Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing, 17(1), 6–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/1474515117721561
Griffiths, P., Recio-Saucedo, A., Dall’Ora, C., Briggs, J., Maruotti, A., Meredith, P., Smith, G. B., & Ball, J. (2018). The association between nurse staffing and omissions in nursing care: A systematic review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 74(7), 1474–1487. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.13564
Montesanti, S. R., Abelson, J., Lavis, J. N., & Dunn, J. R. (2016). Enabling the participation of marginalized populations: case studies from a health service organization in Ontario, Canada. Health Promotion International, dav118. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dav118
Sonnino, R. (2016). Health care leadership development and training: progress and pitfalls. Journal of Healthcare Leadership, 19. https://doi.org/10.2147/jhl.s68068
