Problem solving proposal

Failure to have a keen nurse on duty will result to patient injuries as well as care that is compromised. According to an article in Nurse. com (2017) by Brent, a study was conducted in Pennsylvania and the findings were that nurses who worked for long hours were more prone to making errors that were caused by fatigue and lack of sleep. Therefore, in order to counter the issue, various solutions were implemented to ensure that errors were prevented and mistakes avoided in nursing. Among the solutions to the problem that faces nurses was the introduction of shifts. Also, during the day, after the shift nurses might be prone to extra hours and also can be expected to partake in meetings that fall out of their time span.

The overworking that nurses are accustomed to results to burnout, which is largely becoming an issue in the nursing field since over40% of nurses are prone to it. These long hours of work which accrue to burnout are among the reasons that about 25% of nurses opt to quitting the practicing. Having nurses quit their work is another drawback that the shifting solution leads to. When shifts are scheduled, they are conducted by management as per the time that a certain nurse completed their shift and as such the next one is set. Hospitals should be able to introduce scheduling that has adequate time for one to make arrangements for their own time and do things that take their mind off the work.

The schedules that are flexible and those that cover longer durations are effective because a person can plan for their own time along the schedule. However, this solution is also flawed since nurses work long hours that might even take up the whole week thus denying them the opportunity to create their own time. Creating schedules that are flexible helps nurse to get adequate sleep and manage their time well thus facilitating better connection with their work and as such reducing errors in medicine that could be disastrous to the practice in terms of patient care and safety. To enable a more satisfied work force and reliable nursing community, nurses should be given more off days so that they can rest and take time with their families and also conduct other personal activities.