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. How do you incorporate self-care that includes mental health and spiritual well-being for you and your clients? What does the Bible say about self-care?

Concept of professional accountability-Sample Solution

Professional Accountability in Nursing

Professional accountability is a crucial concept in nursing and is closely associated with nurses’ owning up to their actions when providing care. Professional accountability involves being responsible for the clinical and non-clinical decisions, choices, and actions in nursing as defined by the standard code of ethics for nurses (American Nurses Association [ANA], 2015). Accountability can also be defined as the answerability to clients, patients, colleagues, and employers in nursing (Spears & Allen, 2018). Nurses are primarily responsible for caring for patients and clients that require care and being accountable for the service provided.(Professional Accountability in Nursing Essay-Example)

Nurses can demonstrate professionality in many ways. In every role nurses play, be it care coordination, delegated duty, direct nursing duties, intervention evaluation, research, teaching, or administration, there is a need for proven accountability considering their vested authority (ANA, 2015). For instance, nurses can demonstrate professionalism by adhering to the state’s standards of care, ANA’s code of ethics, and state’s practice acts and regulations. Therefore, nursing accountability calls for nurses’ ability to perform nursing tasks and interventions, accept delegated tasks, be autonomous, and uphold organizational policies and protocols (Davis, 2017). Therefore, nurses need to uphold the existing code of conduct relevant to the nursing specialty and organization represented.(Professional Accountability in Nursing Essay-Example)

Nurses can incorporate self-care, such as mindful medication. Mindfulness meditation increases mental acuity and reduces stress among nurses and is beneficial for their well-being and consequent work performance and nurses (McVeigh et al., 2021). When nurses are stress-free, they can provide quality care and are more satisfied with their work. The Bible says we should care for our physical bodies and exercise self-control (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. (20161 Cor. 9:25–27; 1 Tim. 4:8; 5:23). Therefore, nurses should engage in activities that promote their physical, mental, and spiritual well-being to manage challenges associated with nursing practice and achieve professional accountability.(Professional Accountability in Nursing Essay-Example)

References

American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. Retrieved March 29, 2018, from http://nursingworld.org/DocumentVault/Ethics_1/Code-of-Ethics-for-Nurses.html

American Nurses Association. (2015). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. Available at: http://nursingworld.org/DocumentVault/Ethics_1/Code-of-Ethics-for-Nurses.html (Accessed November 10, 2022)

Davis, C. (2017). The importance of professional accountability. Nursing is easy, 15(6), 4. 10.1097/01.NME.0000525557.44656.04

Davis, C. (2017). The importance of professional accountability. Nursing made incredibly easy, 15(6), 4. 10.1097/01.NME.0000525557.44656.04

McVeigh, C., Ace, L., Ski, C. F., Carswell, C., Burton, S., Rej, S., & Noble, H. (November 2021). Mindfulness-based interventions for undergraduate nursing students in a university setting: a narrative review. In Healthcare (Vol. 9, No. 11, p. 1493). MDPI. https://doi.org/10.1186%2Fs12912-021-00783-0

Spears, T. L., & Allen, L. (2018). Evidence-based care sheet: Accountability in Nursing Practice. https://www.ebscohost.com/assets-sample-content/NRCP_EBCS_Accountability-in-NursingPractice.pdf

Spears, T. L., & Allen, L. (2018). Evidence-based care sheet: Accountability in Nursing Practice. https://www.ebscohost.com/assets-sample-content/NRCP_EBCS_Accountability-in-NursingPractice.pdf

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. (2016). Crossway Bibles. (Originally published 2001)

The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. (2016). Crossway Bibles. (Originally published 2001)