The uncertainty of the healthcare climate and cuts to reimbursement has forced healthcare institutions to change the way care is delivered, making it more important than ever to deliver the highest quality care in the most efficient manner. This trend toward efficiency is affecting the healthcare industry globally, with a significant impact on nursing.When I graduated from nursing school in 1991, I went directly into a special one year Neuroscience Nurse Internship program through the National Institutes of Health in Maryland. These specialized internship programs were rare in South Florida at the time. Most new nurse graduates received two to 4 weeks of training and then were placed directly in the field. I am confident that the specialized training I received help kick start my career in leadership and motivated me to make a difference in the care delivery process. Today, we train Hospice of Palm Beach County and Broward County nurses an average of 6 weeks before they are independent. The nursing profession not only requires compassionate soft skills, it requires a complex understanding of Electronic Medical Records (EMR), analysis skills, computer literacy, and interdisciplinary collaboration. While EMR enhances communication and efficiency, it also adds the complexity of creating large volumes of data. Nurses are not only expected to understand the complexities of clinical care, but be able to evaluate care from a business administration perspective to ensure that funds are spent wisely. Nursing has an opportunity to embrace this changing trend to command a leading role; transforming and enhancing the profession of nursing.
Nurses, who have a patient-centered personality profile, are therefore challenged to become more process-minded in addition to patient-care focused. Together, communication, increased business intelligence and enhanced training leads to more cost-effective, higher quality care. Nurses are at the crux of these changes as primary care providers. Cross-training nurses among disciplines and specialties becomes critical with regard to medical record entries, shift changes, patient plan of care, billing, physician referrals, pharmaceuticals, and so forth.
The best institutional training programs are trending toward enhanced, hands-on nurse training, including preceptor programs for nurses who have just been hired, internship programs and fellowship opportunities. What makes them different is the focus on addressing the knowledge gap between traditional patient care and technology and business acumen. It’s here that the planets begin to align for a nurse faced with today’s job description. Nursing has an opportunity to embrace this changing trend to command a leading role; transforming and enhancing the profession of nursing.
As the future unfolds, adept and process-minded nurses will continue to be not only necessary, but at the forefront of best practices. They offer a critical link between bedside care and business success.
