Accountability and Delegation in Nursing: Strategies for Effective Care

Accountability and
Delegation

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
Summary of Critical Evaluation..................................................................................................3
Summary of Key Findings...........................................................................................................4
Strategies......................................................................................................................................5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................8

INTRODUCTION
Accountability in nursing is concerned with multi-faceted concept according to which
nurses become answerable to themselves and to others for their action and they must satisfy
formal obligation to law, employer and professional code of conducts. Delegation refers
transferring responsibilities for performance of specific task to others and retaining
accountability for the outcomes. In this study, accountability and evaluation will be evaluated for
a registered nurse, who is working in busy vascular surgical ward. In order to increase awareness
about importance of professional accountability and delegation this report will involve its
evaluation. Evaluation will also include findings of different articles on the subject.
MAIN BODY
Summary of Critical Evaluation
Concerned with delegation and accountability, registered nurse has to consider several
aspects. This is because delegation is easy whilst accountability is difficulty, this is because in
accountability actions of others are required to be answered by the one who delegated the task. In
vascular surgical ward, there are 3 Registered Nurses, 2 Enrolled nurses, and 3 Assistants in
nursing and these are students. Concerned with accountability and delegation Registered Nurses
have highest and most important responsibility towards care of patients and they are also
responsible for developing care plans and to coordinated health care of patients. Enrolled nurses
are one who has less responsibility than registered nurses and their responsibility includes
assisting patients with daily activities and reporting observation of patient to registered nurse.
Assistants in Nursing have responsibility of helping patients with personal care.
On the basis of this when registered nurse delegate their responsibility, they can delegate
it to Enrolled nurses and enrolled nurses can delegate their task completion to Assistants in
Nursing. However, accountability for the tasks of registered still remains with them and they
become answerable for acts of enrolled nurses. Similarly, for the responsibilities of enrolled
nurses when they delegate to Assistants in Nursing, accountability remains with them.
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