Nursing Leadership Case Study 2022

Running head:NURSING
Nursing Leadership Case Study
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

NURSING1
With the increasing world population, the need for efficient and widespread
healthcare is increasing continuously. The major healthcare personnel are the nurses who
work closely with the patients and provide them with the best possible healthcare. Registered
nurses are the highest designation among the nurses and thus have a high degree of
responsibility as well. According to the NMBA Registered Nurse Standard of Practice, they
are responsible for providing the best possible patient-centred care in a facility, collaborate
with the patients, check their vitals and monitor them as well
(Nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au, 2020). Apart from that, they have the added responsibility
of leading and supervising the enrolled nurses and nursing assistants and delegating tasks to
them as well. Strong clinical leadership is indispensable for administering quality healthcare
to the patients and ensure the best possible outcomes (Boamah 2018). Clinical leadership can
be described as a way to influence nurses in the team to work towards the same goal- that is
good quality patient care both on an organizational level and individual level (Joseph and
Huber 2015). In the current scenario, Konstantina (Connie) Galonos is a seventy-nine-year-
old patient currently admitted for a lower leg amputation. The aim of this essay is to pinpoint
the role of the Registered Nurses with respect to this case study, in terms of clinical
leadership, patient care and as a part of a collaborative healthcare team.
According to the Clinical Reasoning Cycle (Utas.edu.au, 2020), the first steps are to
describe the patient situation and collect patient cues. Here, Connie is a widow who has been
admitted for lower limb amputation due to large ulcer on her heel and gangrenous toes. That
ulcer is likely caused by her long history of Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus, also called
Type I Diabetes Mellitus (Weledji and Fokam 2014). She also suffers from chronic renal
failure and hypertension. Ten years ago she underwent a hemicolectomy for her bowel cancer
and hence had a permanent colostomy since. She has been coming to the outpatient
department for colorectal, diabetes and renal care. As for the cues she has been reported to be

NURSING2
mediocre in English and from her history of regularly visiting the church, she may be
religious. It is also observed that she is in visible distress even though her daughter has
consoled her. By processing these cues and information, the areas of priority regarding
administering healthcare to her can be identified. The first priority of care is to make sure the
gangrene in her toes does not spread to fast before amputation and prepare her for the surgery
physically. Often, amputation is the foolproof way to treat gangrene. Before that, antibiotics
should be administered to the patient to make sure that the spread is minimal before the
patient undergoes surgery (nhs.uk, 2020). The Registered nurse must conduct all necessary
assessments like nutritional assessment and screening for MRSA. Her vitals should be taken
and recorded as a part of the process to make sure she is ready for the operation (Ruff 2015).
Patients with diabetes or other comorbidities have a higher chance of developing
complications; hence all the possible tests, including blood pressure, blood glucose,
electrolytes must be taken (Virani et al. 2015). This ensures patient safety and is a major
responsibility of the registered nurses. Postsurgical prosthetics if required, must also be
planned out beforehand (O'Keeffe and Rout 2019). Physiotherapy must also be considered
(Dekker et al. 2018). Since the patient also has chronic renal failure and hypertension, it
should be made sure that she is kept under close monitoring. If she requires dialysis or
emptying the colostomy bag, that should be done as well.
Another major priority is to make her feel safe and psychologically prepare her for her
amputation, and Registered Nurse plays a major role in the process. It must be remembered
that while she is familiar with the outpatient department, she has not really been admitted
often. She is mediocre in English, and it is possible that she is feeling uncomfortable and not
being able to completely express herself. She often relies on her family and friends for
support, but she appears to be visibly distressed even after her daughters attempt to console
her. She might be feeling trapped even. Patients undergoing amputation often feel distressed