The Role of the Registered Nurse in relation to delegation.

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The Role of the Registered Nurse in relation to delegation.

One of the vitals skill required by the Registered Nurse is the skill to assign tasks to subordinates (Saccomanos and Pinto-Zipp 2011). When tasks are delegated to subordinates, the RN remains accountable (Nursing and Midwifery Council 2008). On the other hand, an individual who has been given a task also bears responsibility for the task and is answerable to the RN. Hence, delegation involves “responsibility, accountability and authority” (Sullivan & Decker 2005, p. 144). This essay will examine the role of the registered nurse in relation to delegation. Areas that would be discussed includes definitions of delegation, benefits, types of delegaton, nursing process in relation to delegation, common mistakes of delegation, five rights of delegation and barriers to delegation. At the end, it would give a conclusion and also a statement of my learning.

Delegation is seen as a daily routine in clinical settings which can be traced back even to the Holy Bible where Moses father inlaw (Jethro) stated as follows

“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening. And when Moses father inlaw saw all that he did to the people, he said what is this thing that thou doest to the people? Why sittest thou thyself alone and all the people stand by thee from morning unto evening? Thou will surely wear away both thou and this people that is with thee, thou are not able to perform it thyself alone” (Exodus chapter 18, 13 – 18, p. 88).

Delegation as defined by the American Nurses Association (2005) is the ability to handover responsibility for the performance of a duty from one person to ano...

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...ves with practice, it is important for students to gain knowledge about the skill and use them when on clinical placements. Learning these skills will also prepare the student nurses in future to delegate task when they qualify and become RN’s. In relation to my nursing practice, when I become a registered nurse, I will assist student nurses in their career by delegating tasks to them that are within their level of competence as well as making sure that all tasks assigned to them are duly supervised and follow up on the delegated task. I will encourage them to seek clarification where necessay. Providing feedback and praising them for work well done is another thing I would bring into my practice. I will equally inform them through feedback of any task which did not work well and show them areas where they need to improve upon.

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