Charlotte C. Moody, Erica L. Newberry, Nealie F. O’Neal
South Georgia State College
The Importance of Delegation and Prioritization in Nursing Proper delegation and prioritization are two extremely important skills that a nurse performs. Weiss & Tappen (2015) states, “Changes in the healthcare law compound this need, requiring nurses to learn how to work effectively with other members of the healthcare delivery team, particularly nursing assistive personnel” (p. 104). Both are required to ensure optimal patient care and patient safety. “Registered nurses are expected to be knowledgeable about how to systematically lead, prioritize, distribute and coordinate work in the …show more content…
Although some nurses have no problems delegating responsibilities to others, many new nurses are more reluctant to embrace delegation. Institutions and nurses alike should not underestimate the barriers of delegation. Addressing the barriers to delegation by educating nurses, will empower more nurses to effectively delegate while promoting teamwork and providing quality healthcare. This would be beneficial to the nurse, patient, and organization. Sullivan reveals many potential barriers to effective delegation. These barriers include lack of resources, culture of the organization, an insecure delegation, an unwilling delegate, under-delegation, over-delegation, and reverse delegation (Sullivan, 2013). Perhaps the greatest barrier arises from the delegator’s fears. Five fears are identified by Sullivan as arising from an insecure delegation. The first fear is fear of criticism (Sullivan, 2013). This fear can be overcome by educating nurses to use the five rights of delegation, specifically delegating the correct task with the correct person in this case. Success in this area can build confidence of the nurse in his/her decision-making abilities. The second fear is fear of liability (Sullivan, 2013). Registered Nurses are held accountable when delegating care activities to others. There may be legal implications if a client is injured as a result of inappropriate delegation (Weiss & Tappen, 2015). This fear can be eliminated if the nurse becomes familiar with and utilizes the five rights as well as the delegation tree. The third fear is fear of loss of control (Sullivan, 2013). According to Sullivan, the key to retaining control is to clearly identify the task and expectation and then to monitor progress and provide feedback (Sullivan, 2013). Follow up is as important as delegation when providing patient care. The fourth fear is fear of overburdening others (Sullivan, 2013). Recall that delegation is a