Application: Systems Theory

 

As noted in the Learning Resources, systems theory provides a meaningful and beneficial means of examining challenges in health care organizations. To do this effectively, however, it is essential to assess all system components, as some may be relatively healthy while others are problematic.

 

For this Assignment, you apply systems theory to the examination of a problem in a department or a unit within a health care organization. (Note: You may use the same problem you identified for the Discussion as long as it meets the criteria for this assignment.)

 

To prepare:

 

• Review the Meyer article, “Nursing Services Delivery Theory: An Open System Approach,” in this week’s Learning Resources. Focus especially on the information presented in Table 1 (p. 2831) and Figure 2 (p. 2833).
• Reflect on your organization or one with which you are familiar ( Refer to the first discussion you did for me, My organization is a hospital University of Maryland Medical center) . Within a particular department or unit in this organization, identify a problem the staff is encountering.
• Using Table 1 in the Meyer article as a guide, analyze the department or unit, identifying inputs, throughput, output, cycles of events, and negative feedback. Consider whether the problem you have selected relates to input, throughput, output, cycles of events, and/or negative feedback.
• Think about how you could address the problem: Consider what a desired outcome would be, then formulate related goals and objectives, and translate those goals into policies and procedures.
• Research professional standards that are pertinent to your identified problem.
• Reflect on the organization’s mission statement and values. In addition, consider how addressing this problem would uphold the mission and values, while improving the organizational culture and climate. (Depending on the organization you have selected, you may have explored these in the Week 1 Discussion.)

 

To complete:

 

Write a 4- to 5-page paper (page count does not include title and reference page) that addresses the following:

 

• (1) Describe a department or unit within a health care organization using systems theory terminology. Include a description of inputs, throughput, output, cycles of events, and negative feedback.
• (2) Describe the problem you identified within the department or unit using an open- systems approach, and state where the problem exists using the systems theory model (input, throughput, output, cycles of events, or negative feedback).
• (3) Based on this information, explain how you would address the problem as follows:

 

(a) Formulate a desired outcome.

 

(b) Identify goals and objectives that would facilitate that outcome.

 

(c) Translate those goals and objectives into policies and procedures for the department or unit.

 

(d) Describe relevant professional standards.

 

• (4) Explain how your proposed resolution to the problem would uphold the organization’s mission and values and improve the culture and climate.

 

 

 

Guidance for Application Assignments:

 

 

 

Application Assignments require a title page, introduction, body of the paper, conclusion, and reference page. The title page needs to follows APA style and includes a title, student name, course number and section, and date. An abstract is not required. APA style headings are to be used appropriately to separate and organize sections of the paper. The use of direct quotes is discouraged and should only be used when the source material uses language that is particularly striking or notable. The introduction should provide an overview of the topic, the purpose of the paper, and topics that will be addressed. The body of the paper needs to address all required topics. The conclusion ought to provide closure for the reader, synthesize the content, and tie everything together to help clarify the main points of the paper. The reference page should include all references cited in the assignment in correct APA format.. Credible sources include scholarly peer-reviewed journal articles, evidence based resources, and professional (.org), educational (.edu), and government websites (.gov). Commercial websites (.com) are not considered credible sources. Please note: When selecting articles for course assignments, you are advised (unless you are referencing seminal information) to focus on work published within the past five years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

 

Readings

 

• Marquis, B. L., & Huston, C. J. (2015). Leadership roles and management functions in nursing: Theory and application (8th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins.
  • Review Chapter 7, “Strategic and Operational Planning”

    See especially Figure 7.1 on page 147.

  • Chapter 8, “Planned Change”
    • Organizational Change Associated With Nonlinear Dynamics (pp. 172–176)

      Read this section of Chapter 8 on planned change. Consider the role of leaders in effectively managing planned change.

  • Chapter 12, “Organizational Structure”
    • “Organizational Culture” (pp. 274–276)

      There are many structures organizations take, and these structures influence how the organization functions. This chapter discusses many different organizational structures and provides insights into how these structures influence the change process, as well as leadership and management.

• Johnson, J. K., Miller, S. H., & Horowitz, S. D. (2008). Systems-based practice: Improving the safety and quality of patient care by recognizing and improving the systems in which we work. Retrieved from http://www.ahrq.gov/downloads/pub/advances2/vol2/Advances-Johnson_90.pdf

  This article addresses the importance of systems-based practice (SBP) in health care workplaces. The authors state that SBP knowledge is one of six core competencies that physicians have to know in order to provide safe and proper care for their patients.

• Manley, K., O’Keefe, H., Jackson, C., Pearce, J., & Smith, S. (2014). A shared purpose framework to deliver person-centred, safe and effective care: Organisational transformation using practice development methodology. FoNS 2014 International Practice Development Journal 4 (1) [2].

  Except from Abstract: A shared purpose is an essential part of developing effective workplace cultures and one of the founding principles of practice development in establishing person-centred, safe and effective practices that enables everyone to flourish. When units within health care organizations recognize their interdependence, they can create an interdisciplinary practice through systems integration.

• Meyer, R. M., & O’Brien-Pallas, L. L. (2010). Nursing services delivery theory: An open system approach. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 66(12), 2828–2838.
  Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

  In this article, the authors examine the effects of nursing services delivery theory in large-scale organizations. Among other benefits, this theory supports multilevel phenomena and cross-level studies, and it can guide future research and the management of nursing services.

 

 

• Glennister, D. (2011, July). Towards a general systems theory of nursing: A literature review. Paper presented at the 55th Annual Meeting of the International Society for the System Sciences, Hull, United Kingdom. Retrieved from http://journals.isss.org/index.php/proceedings55th/article/viewFile/1717/569
• Hayajneh, Y. (2007). Management for health care professionals series: Systems & systems theory. Retrieved from http://www.hayajneh.org/a/readings/Systems-Theory.pdf

Case Study, Chapter 10, Mandatory Minimum Staffing Ratios

A nurse manager is attending a national convention and is attending a concurrent session on staffing ratios. Minimum staffing ratios are being discussed in the nurse manager’s own state. The nurse manager has a number of questions about staffing ratios that the session is covering. The nurse manager knows that evidence exists that increasing the number of RNs in the staffing mix leads to safer workplaces for nurses and higher quality of care for patients.

1. What are the three general approaches recommended by the American Nurses Association (2017) to maintain sufficient staffing?

2. Summarize the findings that are often cited as the seminal work in support of establishing minimum staffing ratio legislation at the federal or state level.

3. Analyze what proponents and critics say about whether mandatory minimum staffing ratios are needed.

Module 3 DQ 1 and DQ 2

Tutor MUST have a good command of the English language

These are two discussion questions

Your DQ1 and DQ2 posts must be at least 150 words and have at least one reference cited for each question. In-text citation, please

Tutor MUST have a good command of the English language

These are two discussion questions

Your DQ 1 and DQ 2 posts must be at least 150 words and have at least one reference cited for each question. In-text citation, please

DQ 1

Compare and contrast a minimum of two middle-range theories and discuss potential applications in your specific area of nursing practice.

DQ 2

Conduct a literature search in the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) using the terms middle range theory, mid-range theory, and nursing. Select one of the articles where the development of the middle range theory is the major focus of the paper. Share the article citation and describe how the theory was developed.

Health complications can be stressful, especially in more vulnerable populations like young children and the elderly. With stress and loss of function often come depression and other psychological manifestations. As a nurse, part of your job is to recognize and educate patients and caregivers on how to deal with the psychological complications of a health crisis.

In this Assignment, you will educate either a caregiver of an elderly patient or a caregiver of a young child patient on ways to prevent and manage psychological manifestations. Review the Learning Resources dealing with injuries and depression and anxiety.

The Assignment:

Develop a teaching plan for treating the potential psychological issues that may result from health crises in either the elderly or young children. You will use PowerPoint to present your teaching plan. Some considerations to make include:

· In what ways does mental health need to be considered across the illness/injury continuum?

· How can nurses help both patients and caregivers work through mental blocks and depression associated with an illness or injury?

· Although treatment will take place in a medical facility, how can non-medical treatments be used as a supplement?

Support your idea with a minimum of five references from the professional nursing literature.  If they are relevant, you may use one or two professional Web sites in addition to the literature references.

Include the main elements of your presentation to a group of parents or elderly or their caregivers.

This PowerPoint presentation should include between 8–10 slides

Provided an overview slide on the purpose of the presentation.

Described ways mental health needs should be considered across the illness/injury continuum and focused on population to consider and target audience.

Outlined a teaching plan to help both patients and caregivers prevent/manage psychological manifestations associated with an illness, injury, or health crisis.

Addressed possible non-medical treatments to be used as a supplement.

Provided a summary of the main points of the teach plan/presentation.

APA Formatting: cover page, title of paper on second page, level headings, Times New Roman 12 font, 1″” margins, and page numbers. APA References: Uses in-text citations appropriately and format correctly. Paraphrases to avoid plagiarizing the source.
Reference list is in alphabetical order, hanging indent, double spaced in format. Each specific entry contains all information required by APA format including author, year of publication, title of publication, pages, DOI, website, as appropriate.

Details:

This assignment requires you to interview one person and requires an analysis of your interview experience.

Part I: Interview

Select a patient, a family member, or a friend to interview. Be sure to focus on the interviewee’s experience as a patient, regardless of whom you choose to interview.

Review The Joint Commission resourcefound in topic materials, which provides some guidelines for creating spiritual assessment tools for evaluating the spiritual needs of patients. Using this resource and any other guidelines/examples that you can find, create your own tool for assessing the spiritual needs of patients.

Your spiritual needs assessment survey must include a minimum of five questions that can be answered during the interview. During the interview, document the interviewee’s responses.

The transcript should include the questions asked and the answers provided. Be sure to record the responses during the interview by taking detailed notes. Omit specific names and other personal information through which the interviewee can be determined.

Part II: Analysis

Write a 500-750 word analysis of your interview experience. Be sure to exclude specific names and other personal information from the interview. Instead, provide demographics such as sex, age, ethnicity, and religion. Include the following in your response:

1. What went well?
2. Were there any barriers or challenges that inhibited your ability to complete the assessment tool? How would you address these in the future or change your assessment to better address these challenges?
3. How can this tool assist you in providing appropriate interventions to meet the needs of your patient?
4. Did you discover that illness and stress amplified the spiritual concern and needs of your interviewee? Explain your answer with examples.

Submit both the transcript of the interview and the analysis of your results. This should be submitted as one document. The interview transcript does not figure into the word count.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to Turnitin. Please refer to the directions in the Student Success Center.

This benchmark assignment assesses the following competencies:

CONHCP Program Competencies for the RN-BSN:

5.2: Assess for the spiritual needs and provide appropriate interventions for individuals, families, and groups.