i‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍ need a response to this discussion: As nurses, our assignm

i‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍ need a response to this discussion: As nurses, our assignments, duties, and responsibilities, are so cumbersome at times, we have to be able to delegate certain tasks appropriately. If we did not delegate, we might not be able to complete all necessary components of our job function for the shift. However, it is e necessary for us to be able to delegate, that we have properly trained staff to do so. The American Nurses Association developed the five rights of delegation to assist nurses in making safe decisions; Right task, Right circumstance, Right person, Right supervision, and Right direction and communication (Barrow and Sharma, 2021). Many facilities utilize certified nursing assistants, medical assistants, and/or licensed professional nurses, on their teams who work alongside the registered nurses. These staff members must be trained effectively, so that they can be an asset and perform these delegated tasks appropriately. Some of the more common tasks that registered nurses delegate are checking point of care blood glucose, obtaining patient vital signs, ambulating patients, toileting patients, obtaining lab specimens, and feeding patients. I see over-delegation more in older, experienced nurses, who, for a better term, “eat their young”. They tend to view the less experienced nurses, or assistants, as needing to earn their keep, and will abuse their power from time to time. They believe that the less experienced staff member will comply with the‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‍‍‌‍‍ir request, due to the lack of experience and confidence. To me, this is an abuse of power. I also have witnessed this with nurses who feel that nursing assistant duties are beneath them, and so they will not assist, with any of their duties, and expect the aide to do everything for them. This example ends up taking the assistant away from being able to assist other nurses, because this other nurse is monopolizing their time. Under-delegation I see in newer nurses, who feel that they have to do everything themselves, or nurses who have control issues. Many times, I hear nurses saying they will just do it, because the want it done right. However, if they took the time to properly train their staff, they would have the confidence in them, to properly delegate. The newer nurses, are simply learning their flow, and lack to confidence to ask others to perform some of their duties. This is a skill that needs to be learned. Refusal of work, or delegation, I do not see much. As a charge nurse, I sometimes will get push back from nurses who I ask to perform certain tasks, or to take a new admission after theirs have discharged. I simply remind the staff that this is for patient safety and is essential for patient care. I am lucky, that this is not a norm for our unit at the hospital. Reference Barrow, J., & Sharma, S. (2021, July 26). Five Rights of Nursing Delegation. . Retrieved January 6, 2022, from