professional accountability
Outline the concept of professional accountability as it pertains to nursing. Provide examples of how a nurse demonstrates professional accountability in clinical expertise, the nursing process, and evidence-based practice.
Professional nursing accountability is when a nurse takes responsibility for their actions, judgments, and omissions when caring for patients . Professional accountability is also having the responsibility of remaining competent and up to date in all nursing and health care practices (Green, S 2018). Nurses should also have integrity that is always maintained , through their actions, practices, and attitudes which they display to their patients and interdisciplinary team.
A nurse can demonstrate professional accountability in clinical expertise for example by ensuring that they are always properly giving blood products to a patient. Using their clinical expertise, they know they need to have an order, consent, two licensed professionals to verify the blood products and the patient before administration, and to stay with the patient for the first fifteen minutes of the transfusion. Doing this is advocating for the patient to get the correct products safely and requires a certain professional attendanc e.
In the nursing process, a nurse can demonstrate professional accountability by using safe practices. S uch as educating the patient of signs and symptoms of a transfusion reaction, to notify staff if they have any questions and concerns during the transfusion immediately and reporting and intervening if there is a reaction.
P rofessional accountability can be shown in the evidence-based practices (EBP). A nurse being educated and up to date on educations such as EBP and using it to help improve action and promote better patient outcomes.
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