Literature Review on Medical-Surgical Nurses, and Selfcare For Nurses

Selfcare For Nurses

Literature Review: Solution/Intervention

Selfcare was identified as an effective concept that should be promoted among medical-surgical nurses. It was identified that not only would self-care improve the health and increase the energy of the nurses but also it would increase the outcomes of the patients that are attended by the medical-surgical nurses.

Lubinska-Welch et al. (2016) investigated some of the ways that may be used to promote self-care among nurses. The study indicates that it is essential for medical-surgical nurses to undertake self-care practices as well as health-promoting behaviors that would enable them to increase their effectiveness when working. The study, which was conducted in a healthcare facility in a rural area identified several self-care activities that nurses may use to rejuvenate their energy. Some of the activities in which medical-surgical nurses can engage in self-care activities that were identified in the results of the study include having healthy nutrition, adopting healthy sleeping patterns, walking, engaging in activities that have play, laughter, and humor, listening to music, and practicing spirituality. When nurses engage in such activities, they feel refreshed, and thus they can perform their duties and responsibilities better thus increasing patient outcomes. Thus, the study provides a relevant solution that may be used in promoting self-care among medical-surgical nurses.

Wei et al. (2020) also investigated the self-care activities that nurses can engage in when battling burnout after working for long hours. The article indicated that professional burnout is a widespread phenomenon in the healthcare industry as a result of heavy workloads among the healthcare practitioners such as nurses. Thus, identifying effective self-care activities and routines is essential in battling burnouts. The study used 20 nurses that work in a pediatric unit to identify some of the effective self-care activities that may be used by nurses. According to the results of the article, some of the most effective self-care activities that nurses can engage in include finding meaning in work, nurturing interpersonal connections, performing emotional hygiene, connection with an energy source, developing an attitude of positivity, and recognizing one’s uniqueness and contributions at work. That indicates that the article provides a solution to the lack of self-care among nurse practitioners in the healthcare sector. If the nurses follow the recommendations that have been provided by the article as well as the previous article, they will have some activities that they can engage in after work to rejuvenate their energy. Thus, that will increase the morale of the nurses thus improving the patient outcomes as they will perform better in their duties and responsibilities.

Implementation/Intervention

The intervention that will be adopted by this study is connecting to the energy source. Connecting to energy source is rejuvenating the energy that a person has through engaging in some activities as will be described in this section. For instance, through meditation one gets more energy and thus they can achieve better results. This self-care technique has been adopted as when actualizing it, other numerous healthcare strategies are utilized thus ensuring that a nurse has relaxed to the fullest. In this case, the steps that may be used to implement the self-care technique will be explained. Additionally, how the self-care technique will improve the morale and the effectiveness of medical-surgical nurses when performing their roles and responsibilities will be indicated. Lastly, the follow-up or the methods that can be used to measure the effectiveness of the self-care technique will be listed. That will ensure that the self-care technique is evaluated for effectiveness when it is used by medical-surgical nurses.

When medical-surgical nurses use the self-care technique of connecting with their energy, their energy will be rejuvenated (Wei et al., 2020). That is because the self-care technique enables them to feel good, get more guidance from the universe, and also enable the manifestations to flow with ease. Three ways may be used by the medical-surgical nurses to connect with their source of energy namely; making space for the source of energy, looking for the signs, and raising their vibe.

The first step that has been identified is making space for the source of energy. Most medical-surgical nurses are usually on the go. Due to the heavy workload, they are always thinking of what they are supposed to do next. Thus, at most of the time, their mind is always full. That gives little space to connect with one’s source of energy. That is because to connect with the source of energy, one must be open and relaxed. There are some activities that medical-surgical nurses can engage in to ensure that they connect with their source of energy (Wei et al., 2020). The activities include reducing the things on their to-do list, making time for mediation, creating literal sources in their schedule, and giving their minds room to breathe. That entails doing nothing such as taking a walk and just enjoying the view. That will make them relax and also rejuvenate their energy.

The second step is to look for signs. When a person is busy, they hardly notice the things that make them relax. That may lead to them missing opportunities that they would have used to connect with their energy source. Some activities that can promote that include getting into mindfulness and practicing walking mindfulness. That entails noticing what is happening in one’s environment and enjoying nature;’s beauty.

The third step is to raise one’s vibe. When a person has a low vibe, they do not match with the energy from their energy source. That is because high energy has a high vibe frequency and energy. Thus, it is crucial to maintain a high level of vibe to connect with the energy source. Some of the activities that can be utilized to achieve such are practicing gratitude every day, spending free time in nature, and moving one’s body through some exercises such as walking, visiting the gym, jogging and running, swimming, among others.

Self-care is essential in increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of medical-surgical nurses. That is because through engaging in the self-care technique that has been identified, medical-surgical nurses reduce the stress that they have and it also enables them to replenish their energy as well as their capacity to provide empathy and compassion. That enables the medical-surgical nurses to improve the quality of care that they provide to the patients. Thus, when medical-surgical nurses engage in self-care activities, they lead to an improvement in patient safety, patient engagement, patient satisfaction as well as patient care (Wei et al., 2020). The American Nurses Association recommends self-care activities in its code of ethics. That is to be used through engaging in self care the outcomes of the medical-surgical nurses are improved.

To evaluate the impact of the self-care technique among the medical-surgical nurses, the effectiveness of the medical-surgical nurses should be evaluated after they start using the self-care technique. For instance, the deliverables that should be checked include the outcomes of the patients such as the changes in patient care, patient satisfaction, patient safety, and the changes in the quality of healthcare services that are provided to the patients. If such measures have increased, it reflects that the self-care technique is effective as it has increased the effectiveness, efficiency, and morale of the medical-surgical nurses. If the mentioned deliverables decrease, it indicates that the self-care technique that has been identified is not effective. That is because when medical-surgical nurses take part in self-care, they should have more energy and morale to perform better when providing healthcare services to the patients and when interacting with the patients.

References

Lubinska-Welch, I., Pearson, T., Comer, L., & Metcalfe, S. E. (2016). Nurses as instruments of healing: self-care practices of nurses in a rural hospital setting. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 34(3), 221-228.

Wei, H., Kifner, H., Dawes, M. E., Wei, T. L., & Boyd, J. M. (2020). Self-care strategies to combat burnout among pediatric critical care nurses and physicians. Critical care nurse, 40(2), 44-53.

CAP Draft Instructions

Students submit two drafts of their CAP paper during the term. The student’s clinical instructor reviews the drafts and provides feedback. Each draft earns a maximum of 5 points. Consult the “CAP Instructions and Rubric” document for guidance on content.

1^st draft contains:

• Introduction
• Literature review of the topic/issue

The first draft includes proper APA-styled citations for the articles referenced. It does NOT need to include an APA-styled title page; however, this is a requirement for the final paper.

2^nd draft contains:

• Literature review of the solution/interventions
• Implementation/intervention

The second draft includes proper APA-styled citations for the articles referenced.

Instructor Feedback

• These drafts are an opportunity for the instructor to tell the student if they are on the right track for content, writing, and formatting.
• The drafts are not an opportunity to receive detailed corrections on content and APA style.

Students are encouraged to seek writing/APA assistance from the APA Publication Manual, ResU’s lib guides, the Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue, or through the TutorMe resource found on the landing page of Brightspace.

Grading criteria

CAP drafts will be assessed using the following criteria. Late submissions will lose up to 10% for every day submitted past the due date.

4-5 points: very good/good

Draft follows all instructions; includes the required content contained in the CAP rubric. Writing is cohesive. Draft may have one or two deficiencies in completeness, content, writing mechanics, or APA format.

3 points: average

Draft follows most instructions; includes most of the required content contained in the CAP rubric. Writing may need improvement. Draft has three or four deficiencies in content, writing mechanics, or APA format.

1-2 points: deficient

Assignment is submitted but does not follow directions, lacks content, and/or is incomplete.

0 points: Nothing submitted