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Reflecting on Nursing Development
Alfa Shrestha
Southern New Hampshire University
NUR-300 Scholarly Inquiry
Professor Omsberg
June 23, 2023
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Reflecting on Nursing Development
In this assignment, I will explore nursing-related issues and share my reflections on how these
issues have influenced my practice. Additionally, I will discuss the topics I have learned throughout the
course.
Professional Nursing Issue
Nurses encounter numerous challenges throughout their careers, and each of these challenges
can profoundly affect their lives. In my discussion, I have chosen to focus on the issue of nursing
shortage. The issue of nursing shortage is not a new topic, but it has been exacerbated by the COVID-
19 pandemic. Nursing shortages have been present for some time, but when the COVID pandemic hit
this made the previous shortage even more complex (Ross, 2022). Nursing shortage has created
unfavorable working conditions, insufficient staffing models, and a lack of flexibility (Bourgault, 2022).
As a result of shortage issues, nurses have faced adverse physical and psychological effects. Studies
have reported longer hours and heavier workload during the pandemic has led to significant physical
and mental health effects creating a high turnover rate among nurses. (Lopez et al., 2022).
The shortage of nurses has adverse effects on patient safety outcomes. As dedicated healthcare
professionals, nurses strive to deliver exceptional care to their patients. However, due to the escalating
patient workload, nurses find themselves unable to provide adequate care. The researchers suggest that
the observed higher risk of death as the number of new admissions increases could be due to the
increased workload on registered nurses. The death increased by 3% for each day a patient spent on a
unit with RN staffing below the mean for that unit (Rosenberg, 2019). Peters (2023), has proposed a
range of potential solutions to address this issue, including strategies such as enhancing work retention,
improving recruitment efforts, and promoting the return to nursing practice. Implementing a
combination of these approaches, either collectively or selectively, would result in a more
comprehensive and well-rounded approach to tackling the problem at hand.
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Summary of Research
Nursing shortage is an issue that has impacted healthcare workers. I discovered a multitude of
research pretending to the nursing shortage and an array of solutions that were suggested in the
research. Even though there has been extensive research, the issue is still ongoing, and it keeps getting
worse. I have observed nurses being assigned demanding patient loads as a direct consequence of the
nursing shortage. Unfortunately, this heavy workload often prevents them from delivering the quality of
care they strive for, as they are unable to conduct frequent patient checks. Studies have presented
compelling evidence linking insufficient nurse staffing to unfavorable patient outcomes, including
increased mortality rates, failure to rescue, and non-mortality adverse events such as pneumonia and
urinary tract infections (Li, 2021). The presence of a robust registered nurse (RN) workforce is crucial for
delivering quality care and achieving positive patient outcomes.
Impact on Personal Nursing Practice
Over the past eight weeks, my knowledge and understanding of nursing and its related factors
have significantly expanded. I have gained valuable skills in conducting thorough research to support the
written assignments in this class. Through my research, I have come to realize that to contribute to the
improvement of nursing for my colleagues, it is crucial to advocate for our voices to be heard and
address the topics that directly impact us. It is essential to join nursing organizations for career
advancement and guidance on engaging with legislative matters. They offer valuable support for
professional development, offering insights on effectively interacting with lawmakers and influencing
policy decisions. Nursing Organizations such as ANA can be the catalyst to achieve some of these
recommendations. Joining ANA and respective state associations is vital to advance the profession of
nursing through improving the quality of health care, providing advocacy for nurses on federal and
national levels, educating nurses on areas of opportunities to increase knowledge via continuing
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education, and cultivating opportunities for nurses to engage in discussion to share knowledge
(Chatmon, B., & Thomas, 2019). As a nurse, It is important to safeguard myself in the workplace and
maintain licensure by acquiring individual liability insurance. Workplace-provided liability insurance
typically does not cover legal actions initiated by the plaintiff in conjunction with the State Board of
Nursing (SBON). Therefore, obtaining personal liability insurance becomes necessary to ensure
comprehensive protection. According to O’Neil (2021), employers' insurance won't cover nurses for
actions related to SBON proceedings. Butler (2019) states relying solely on employer-provided coverage
can put nurses at risk of being unexpectedly left without insurance coverage. Having additional coverage
provides nurses with greater peace of mind, especially in situations that fall outside the scope of their
employer's policy.
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References
Butler, S. (2019). Do all nurses need malpractice insurance? Journal of Radiology Nursing, 38(3), 148–
149. https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1016/j.jradnu.2019.05.018
Chatmon, B., & Thomas, N. (2019). KNA highlights the importance of joining a professional nursing
organization. Kentucky Nurse, 67(2), 18.
Li, Y., & Cimiotti, J. P. (2021). Nurse staffing and patient outcomes during a natural disaster. Journal of
Nursing Regulation, 12(3), 30–37. https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1016/S2155-
8256(21)00114-9
Lopez, V., Anderson, J., West, S., & Cleary, M. (2022). Does the cOVID-19 pandemic further impact
nursing shortages? Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 43(3), 293–295.
https://doi-org/10.1080/01612840.2021.1977875
O’Neill, S. P. (2021). Individual nurse liability insurance: Understand your options. American Nurse
Journal, 16(5), 54–58.
Peters, M. (2023). Time to solve persistent, pernicious and widespread nursing workforce
shortages. International Nursing Review, 70(2), 247–253.
https://doi-org.ezproxy.snhu.edu/10.1111/inr.12837
Rosenberg, K. (2019). RN shortages negatively impact patient safety. American Journal of
Nursing, 119 (3), 51.
Ross, J. (2022). Nursing shortage creating patient safety concerns. Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing,
37(4). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jopan.2022.05.078
