The examination of nursing work through a role accountability framework.

Aim: To use work analysis data to describe the amount of time registered nurses (RNs) and health care aides (HCA) spent on key clinical role accountabilities and other work activities.

Background: Health care providers are not effectively utilized. To improve their efficiency and effectiveness, it is necessary to understand how nursing providers enact their role accountabilities.

The evolving role of nurses in primary care medical settings.

The role of nurses in primary care is understudied. The purpose of this study was to describe the current registered nurse (RN) role in three Primary Care Networks (PCNs) in western Canada and to identify opportunities for optimal utilization of RNs in these settings. Case study methodology included interviews and document review.

Patient journey: implications for improving and integrating care for older adults with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Many patients, particularly older patients, interact with multiple providers while accessing health care services in a variety of different settings over extended periods of time. Understanding older patients' experiences of their journeys through the health system is critical to improving service integration and quality of care. In this study, we have summarized the experiences of four patients living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease as they interacted with the health care system over a three-month period following hospital discharge.

Going blank: factors contributing to interruptions to nurses' work and related outcomes.

Aim: To examine interruptions to nurses' work, the systems issues related to these and the associated outcomes.

Background: While some research has described the role interruptions play in medication errors, work is needed to examine specific factors in the nursing work environment that cause interruptions and to assess the impact of these on nurses' work and patient outcomes.

Methods: The present study utilized a mixed method design that involved work observation to detect nursing interruptions in the workplace followed by focus groups with a subsample of nurses.

Nursing workforce utilization: an examination of facilitators and barriers on scope of practice.

Several reports have highlighted the need to address underutilization of health human resources, but barriers to and facilitators of role optimization for nurses are poorly understood. The purpose in this study was to understand the perceptions of nurses - Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs) - of the extent to which they can work to full scope of practice and identify barriers and facilitators in optimizing their roles. As part of a mixed-methods study, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 167 acute care nurses (RNs, LPNs, RPNs and nurse managers) in three western Canadian health regions.

Nursing scope of practice: descriptions and challenges.

The nursing workforce is faced with shortages of near crisis proportions, yet little is understood about the optimal utilization of various categories of nurses - Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPNs). The primary purpose in this study was to elicit the perceptions of nurses (RNs, LPNs, and RPNs) of what "working to full scope of practice" meant to them. Participants included acute care nurses in three health regions in western Canada.

Decision making for nurse staffing: Canadian perspectives.

The effectiveness of methods for determining nurse staffing is unknown. Despite a great deal of interest in Canada, efforts conducted to date indicate that there is a lack of consensus on nurse staffing decision-making processes. This study explored nurse staffing decision-making processes, supports in place for nurses, nursing workload being experienced, and perceptions of nursing care and outcomes in Canada.