When working in a fast-paced environment, nurses often have to think on their feet while consistently delivering an exceptional level of resident care. If you are a new nurse looking for ways to achieve the best health and well-being outcomes for your residents, here are some useful insights on nursing and medication:
1. Be compassionate:
Compassion is a vital factor in resident care. It is more than simply providing quality medical treatment – it also means taking residents’ emotions into consideration and treating them well. This requires developing a relationship with the resident that is built on empathy and understanding. You must be aware of the current situation and how it might be affecting the residents emotionally. They may be stressed, anxious, upset or in pain and it is important to respond with kindness and offer clinical and emotional support.
2. Take time to communicate effectively:
As a nurse, you must practise good communication skills to understand the resident’s concerns. Here are some tips to communicate effectively with residents:
- Encourage patients to communicate by asking open questions.
- Use the resident’s first name or name of choice when addressing.
- Speak in clear sentences. Avoid medical jargon.
- Maintain eye contact and nod your head knowing what the resident is saying.
- Use body language that conveys openness.
3. Follow the 8Rs of medication administration:
It is essential that you are aware of the importance of administering medication correctly. In a busy environment, it can be easy to make mistakes if the proper procedures are not followed. Follow the “8 rights” of medication administration to ensure that medication is properly administered.
4. Pay attention to each resident:
As a nurse, it is essential to be able to assess each resident’s individual needs and have the confidence to safely provide care. This also means you should possess the ability to assess each individual resident’s needs and recognise when and to whom to refer the resident if necessary.
5. Be committed:
As a nurse, it is important to be committed to high-quality resident care and continuous self-development. New research and trends in healthcare are always emerging and it is essential to be able to adapt to these changes to provide the best possible care for residents.
For instance, if you work in a care home that has switched to electronic MAR charts make sure that you do not skip the training. Electronic MAR charts will help you to ensure medication is administered reliably.
With eMAR, you can access resident information in a fraction of the time and use correct information to administer medication. Knowing how to use the features of electronic MAR charts such as making monthly reports and taking notes can reduce paperwork. This way more quality time will be spent with residents. Using eMAR, you can set alerts so that you do not miss any medication. MAR chart medication trainingcan help you to use the software to do your work more efficiently.