INSTRUCTIONAL PLAN

Instructional Plan



Instructional Plan

Part 2 Development And Implementation Of Instruction

Delivery Modality

Nursing modalities are ways care is organized and delivered to patients. They have to do with arranging staff members and assigning patients. Care delivery methods take into account the total number of patients and tasks needed to be accomplished as well as how many nurses are needed. Most importantly, they are concerned with meeting patient's needs and continuity of care. (Cameron, 2003)

Team nursing involves having a head nurse supervise and coordinate a team of nurses. The head nurse assigns each individual nurse a group of patients. Each nurse is responsible for most of each patient's care. Some of the duties may be delegated to other nurses or assistant personnel such as nursing assistants. The head nurse is typically a registered nurse who assigns patients primarily according to the abilities or expertise of each nurse. The type of nursing staff including nursing staff at all levels of expertise: nurses, nursing assistants and nursing aides, orderlies and assistants.

Primary nursing generally requires all nurses on staff be registered nurses. Each nurse is assigned to a small group of patients according to expertise but is not just responsible for the time she is on duty. The nurse is accountable for each patient's total care continuously until discharge even when technically off duty. She should be responsible for the care of their patients all the time, but is assisted by a nurse who communicates associated with patient information. The associate nurse provides care when the primary nurse is off duty, but the primary nurse is contacted if needed. The primary nursing modality was thought to not be cost-effective because of the exclusive use of registered nurses. Today this model is still used in hospitals, but may use practical nurses as associate nurses. (Cook, 1996)

Case management is a more recent development as the health care began to explore more efficient, but cost-effective ways to deliver patient care. This model utilizes the role of a nurse case manager, typically a registered nurse who advocates, manages and coordinates care for patients. It is used in hospitals and clinics as well as in the community. The focus of case management is on a specified population.

Private duty nursing refers to a delivery method of care in which one nurse is responsible for the complete care of one individual patient typically in the home. This is how nursing was done when first established as a profession in the U.S. It was used briefly in the hospital for depression, but it was too difficult to coordinate due to the large number of patients and not enough nurses. Functional nursing was the main modality used in hospitals at that time. The group nursing and total patient care modalities were created in an effort to try and adapt private duty nursing to the hospital setting. In group nursing, a group of nurses care for a group of patients. With total patient care, the nurse assumes full responsibility for a patient or patient group ...