Journal of Perioperative & Critical Intensive Care Nursing
Open Access

Assessing the Nursing Staffs Skills in Intensive Care Units

Author info »

Introduction

Intensive care nursing (ICN) is a specialty of nursing that entails caring for patients with life-threatening illnesses or injuries while also providing comfort and support. They provide assistance to their family members. The intensive care unit (ICU) environment is highly technical, requiring nurses to have a wide knowledge base and strong decision-making skills while they care for patients and their families who are in fragile situations. Intensive care nursing is the provision of continuous, nuanced, and comprehensive health care in a variety of life-threatening situations [1]. In the intensive care unit, a lot of money is spent on training new nurses (ICU). Since the ICU environment is complex and the patients are critically ill, these services are needed. To excel and provide quality care to their patients, nurses need advanced information, the ability to clearly identify and adjust goals quickly, strong communication and teamwork skills, and the ability to function in a challenging setting. The nurse's critical thinking skills assist her in navigating the ICU's dynamic and challenging setting. Nursing experience isn't the only thing that goes into critical thought. It entails the ability to think about multifaceted, dynamic situations in order to predict needs, consider possible and current complications, and interact effectively with the team. A nurse who is capable of rational thinking would have better patient care. Critical thinking skills in ICU nurses can be developed using a variety of techniques. Nurse leaders should empower less experienced workers to learn critical-thinking skills in order to improve the nurse's ability to function in the ICU and improve patient outcomes [2]. Nurses in intensive care units (ICUs) are responsible for delivering care to patients who are seriously ill or at risk of dying. This treatment necessitates a high degree of nursing competence, and it has been suggested that inexperienced nursing staff has a detrimental effect on the standard of care provided to critically ill patients. When inexperienced nursing staff is combined with staff shortages, insufficient monitoring, and high unit activity, errors are more likely to occur. 18 As a result, nurses employed in intensive care units must be professional ICU nurses with additional ICU educational credentials. Obtaining the required credentials, on the other hand, presents its own set of challenges. In South African intensive care units, nurses have two choices. They can either wait for their turn to be sent for training via their place of employment, which can take years and put more strain on those nurses who are left to continue working in the unit. Alternatively, they must seek out their own teaching. Private study may be costly, and it can necessitate time away from work or necessitate relocating to a different place. Nurses must request study leave from management, which can be difficult in a busy unit where management cannot release all students on the same day. It's also necessary to keep in mind that, as adult learners, these nurses are responsible for their own families, job and research obligations, as well as additional financial obligations [3].

Nurses with adequate knowledge may improve the quality of nursing care, especially in critical care units. Awareness is one of the most emphasised characteristics of critical care unit nursing staffs. Nursing staff on sensitive units need specialised knowledge of the work environment. As a result, it is proposed that, in light of current educational needs, more attention be paid to text moderation based on specialisation in nursing educating courses in various fields of application.

REFERENCES

1. De Beer J, Brysiewicz P, Bhengu BR. Intensive care nursing in South Africa. South Afr J Crit Care. 2011;27(1):6-10.

2. Swinny B. Assessing and developing critical-thinking skills in the intensive care unit. Crit Care Nurs Q. 2010;33(1):2-9.

3. Mohammadi GR, Ebrahimian AA, Mahmoudi H. Evaluating the knowledge of intensive care unit nursing staffs. 2009.