The Future Role of Nurses
Because almost all of our Herman Miller Healthcare products are used by nurses, we believe it’s important to be aware of research that could affect their work.
As the largest segment of the healthcare workforce, nurses will continue to play a key role in overcoming challenges and fulfilling the promises of our rapidly changing healthcare system.
The latest research about the nursing comes from the Institute of Medicine in a report called The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health.
Four key recommendations emerged from the report:
• Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training.
• Nurses should achieve higher levels of education and training through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression.
• Nurses should be full partners, with physicians and other health professionals, in redesigning health care in the United States.
• Effective workforce planning and policy making require better data collection and an improved information infrastructure.
Judging by the number of healthcare media references, The Future of Nursing report has started an important conversation about the role of nurses in providing care.
This report will also inform our conversations with customers about environments such as patient rooms and unit cores and how they will support nurses in the future.
Another very important initiative is greater workplace safety. Too many of the healthcare workers I know (nurses, nursing home attendants, etc.) end up with permanent back injuries due to chronic under staffing and lack of proper equipment. They are expected to lift and move patients without adequate assistance – often in situations where the nurses feel that they can’t ethically say “no” since a patient is in immediate need. This type of avoidable injury happens far too often and is clearly an area where OSHA needs to step in and make employers responsible for keeping staffing at appropriate levels and providing equipment to nursing staff.
Daisy McCarty
http://www.sandiegocubicles.com/blog/