Dear Taranda,
Thank you so much for your interesting post. You are bringing up a problem of which we all are more or less aware. However, the oftener we articulate it, the more chances there are for us to collectively to find a reasonable solution which would allow us to change the situation. As reasonably admitted by Gillen (2012), whom you cited in your post as well, nurses are put into the situation where they are forced by the managerial staff to compromise quality to the amounts. But it is certainly hard to blame everything on the managerial staff. It is not them who cause the difficulties. It is the system which we all need to collectively revise. When I write “we”, I mean by far not only the nurses, but also the managerial staff, the other medical workers, patients and so on. In a word, I am speaking of our entire society. And only together are we capable of coping with this uneasy task. And the task is truly challenging. First of all because we still do not quite realize what is meant under the quality of provided services. Is it patient satisfaction? How to measure it? I personally believe that the quality of services provided needs to be defined in different terms, different from patient satisfaction. We need a working evaluation system. Before such is developed and discussed by the society, it is hard to expect any success in this work.
As stated above, I entirely support your thought regarding the necessity of switching from quantity-based approach to quality-based approach. In this respect it is our task, as professionals, to initiate the changes, to start the discussion and, maybe, to moderate it. I sure hope that we, as a professional group, are ready to take such great responsibility and properly realize our ideals and wishes.
- Gillen, S. (2012). Most nurses are struggling with inadequate staffing, survey shows. Nursing Standard, 26(34), 9.
