Running head: SELECTING A CARE DELIVERY MODEL 1

Selecting a Care Delivery Model

Lauren Herr

Grand Canyon University: NSG-436

June 8, 2020
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Selecting a Care Delivery Model

In the health care system, nurses have the obligation to their patients to maximize patient

safety and provide well-rounded care. One way this role can be implemented is through care

delivery models. Care delivery models when well-designed can “maximize the quality and safety

of nursing care” to patients and their families. (Huber, 2018, p. 226). However, it is important to

research and study each model because there are pros and cons to each one. Two effective

models are team nursing and functional nursing. The purpose of the paper is to compare and

contrast these two care delivery models, decide which one would be most beneficial to

implement and discuss the financial impact it would have on the unit.

Care Delivery Models

The team nursing model is designed to meet the needs of each client through maximizing

each nurse’s capabilities through implementing a nurse leader. This leader supervises certified

nursing assistants, RN's, and licensed practical nurses. The nurse leader needs to consider what

their scopes of practice entail and how well rounded they are in their skills. The purpose of the

nurse leader is to assign each nurse to their patient dependent upon their specific expertise. Even

though they have their patient, it is expected that each team member assists and support the other

nurses on the floor. This model is dependent upon frequent communication and collaboration.

The main advantage of utilizing this model is that teamwork is at the center of the foundation.

Studies have shown that when teamwork was implemented on the nursing floor, there was a

decrease in patient stress levels, enhanced patient safety, fewer medical errors, and a decrease in

overall healthcare costs (Why Teamwork and Communication, 2019). Overall, this model

improves and ensures effective patient care.

In contrast, the functional nursing model focuses on creating specific tasks. This model is

defined as “the division of labor that is assigned according to specific tasks and technical aspects

of the jobs, such as medication administration and taking vital signs” (Huber, 2018, p. 232). The

main advantage of utilizing this model is that it is task-oriented. Assignments are clearly defined

to specific nurses such as one nurse is responsible for administering medications while another

nurse is responsible for taking vital signs. These roles are clearly defined to ensure there is no

confusion and to eliminate nursing overload. However, there are some disadvantages to this

model. Having multiple nurses assigned to one patient caused a decreased in-patient care and

nurse-patient relationship. It diminishes the nurse's critical thinking and overall approach to their

well-rounded care.

Implementation

After researching and reviewing the strengths and weaknesses of each care delivery

model, the model I would implement on a medical-surgical unit would be the team nursing

model. Team nursing helps improve patient care by reducing their stress levels and decreasing

errors in their care. In contrast, functional nursing disrupts nurse's critical thinking and limits the

care of those with complex issues. Nurses must understand and help each other when conflict

arises. On a medical-surgical floor, there are going to be patients that have complex care and

require more critical thinking. Medical-surgical nurses solve the difficult situations that arise in

patient care through effective communication with those on the whole health care team (Care

Issues, 2020). Because of this, it is essential to implement a model in which communication is

the foundation. On a unit where there are a variety of tasks to complete and elaborate care, it is

important to have nurses support one another.

Financial Impact
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Even though the team nursing model would greatly benefit patient care, it is important to

consider the financial impact it would have on the hospital. To better patient outcomes, there

must be a greater proportion of RN’s to patients to maximize their skills (Huber, 2018). As a

result of this, it would be necessary to staff more RN’s on the floors to maximize patient safety

and care. Additionally, there would need to be more certified nursing assistants and licensed

practical nurses to help lighten the workload of nurses. To provide excellent care with a richer

skill mix, there would have to be a financial impact on the hospital due to their salary. All in all,

this would be a costly model. However, delivering safe well-rounded care outweighs the

financial impact it would have on the hospital. The priority of the health care system should be to

the best possible care rather than cutting corners to save money.
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References

Care Issues. (2020). Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses. Retrieved from

https://www.amsn.org/care-term-reference/care-issues

Huber, D. L. (2018). Leadership and nursing care management (6th ed.). St. Louis, MO:

Elsevier-Saunders. ISBN-13: 9780323389662

Why Teamwork and Communication are Critical in Nursing. (2019). Eastern Illinois University.

Retrieved from https://learnonline.eiu.edu/articles/rnbsn/teamwork-communication-

critical-in-nursing.aspx