Analysis of Nursing Standards of Practice: Capability & Thinking

This essay provides an overview of the nursing standards of practice in Australia, emphasizing the importance of critical thinking (Standard 1) and maintaining capability for practice (Standard 3) as set by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA). It highlights how critical thinking involves analysis, synthesis, and assessment of information for effective decision-making and problem-solving in patient care. The essay also discusses various ways registered nurses can demonstrate critical thinking, such as reflecting on experiences, building professional relationships, and utilizing evidence-based practices. Furthermore, it elaborates on the significance of maintaining capability for practice, which includes continuous learning, responsible decision-making, and providing patient education. The essay concludes by underscoring the role of these standards in ensuring quality healthcare service delivery and maintaining safe and competent nursing practice.

Running head: NURSING CLINICAL PRACTICE 1
Importance of nursing standards of practice
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Introduction
The nursing standards of practice were introduced to help in harmonizing and
standardizing the nursing service delivery to the clients in Australia. These standards ensure that
the services provided by nurses are of good quality. When these health standards are applied in
the work place, they help nurses to improve their working capabilities. The nursing standards of
practice also helps in guiding the recipients on their right and responsibilities when receiving
health care services. It is essential for registered nurses to fully understand the standards of
practice in order to ensure that they provide the service according to the requirement of these
standards. Applying the standards in their daily activities will also help in minimizing the
liability that may accrue to nurses if they breach these standards of practice. The Nursing and
Midwifery Board of Australia has set the nursing standards to be observed by all nurses in their
routine practices. These standards help to harmonize the practices of nurses across the health
care sector as the provide services to the patients. The two standards to be discussed are standard
number 1 critical thinking skills and standard three maintaining capacity for practice. The
nursing standard of practice are interrelated, and they are inseparable that is application of one
standard in nursing practice cannot be termed as complete compliance unless other standards
have also been followed. Registered nurses are universally obliged to strictly follow the set
standards of practice in carrying out of their duties to ensure that quality health care services are
given to the clients.
Standard 1, Thinks critically and analyses nursing practice
Critical thinking is a mental process that entails analysis, synthesis, and assessment of
information during a nursing practice. Critical thinking is useful to nurses during the process of
making decisions and solving patients’ problems. Critical thinking and analyses are very

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important processes that ensures that nursing interventions are skillful and efficient (Dang &
Dearholt, 2017). Nursing practice requires health practitioners to show sound judgement and
skills of making decisions because decision making and critical thinking are important aspects of
nursing practice. The ability of a nurse to understand and respond to deterioration signs of a
patient in time plays a vital role in patients’ health outcomes. Making errors in decisions and
judgement are the causes of antagonistic clinical events (O'connell, Gardner & Coyer, 2014).
Nurses apply critical thinking in the process of making decisions to solve patients’
problems creatively to influence the outcomes. It is an important process for an efficient, skillful
and safe nursing intervention. Critical thinking assists registered nurses to come up with new and
reasonable ideas fast to implement in the course of their work. Nurses are also able to generate
original and considerable solutions to the challenges, face situations confidently and
independently when providing health care service to the patients (Chan, 2013).
The registered nurses can demonstrate the standard of critical thinking in several ways.
Registered nurse should develop clear practices by way of reflection on knowledge, feelings,
experience, beliefs, and experiences to identify how they influence their practices. It can be done
through building professional relationships with fellow workers and the patients, involving a care
plan review, and growing confidence while conversing with the patients (Stuart, 2014). The
nurse needs to maintain timely, comprehensive and accurate documentation of plans,
assessments, actions, decision making, and evaluations. It can be simply done through improving
knowledge of medication, skills on clinical care and monitoring of patients, demonstrating
initiative in nursing interventions and involving others in decision-making process. Registered
nurse should also access, critically analyze and utilize the best evidence available, which include
study findings for quality practice and safety. It can be best done through proper interactions

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with the patients, identification of drug use indicators and effective management of time and
skills prioritization (Lunney, 2013).
Nurses needs to comply with policies, regulations, guidelines, legislations among other
standards which are relevant to their line of duty and practice. It can be possible if nurses
understand their roles in the area of operation, they are responsible and accountable, have active
listening skills and can complete patient assessment (Maurer & Smith, 2013). The nurses also
need to use ethically established frameworks in decision making and continuously improve the
quality of research that is relevant to their nursing practice. It may be done through effective and
efficient documentation of research reports, critical thinking in problem solving, in-depth
communication skills and building a professional relationship in workplace. Finally, registered
nurses should respect all cultures through respecting the role of community and family in health
care provision. It can be implemented through engaging patient and family members in decision
making concerning treatment of the patient, monitoring the clinical care provision to the patient
and providing patient-centered health care plan. The nurses should ensure that they adhere to this
standard in order to carry out their duties effectively (Grove, Burns & Gray, 2012).
Standard 3, maintaining capability for practice
Registered nurses need to possess the required capabilities for their nursing practice.
They are required to have necessary capabilities to be able to carry out their duties and
responsibilities well. The most important thing in this standard is the nurse’s ability to manage
his activities and respond positively to any concern related to other healthcare practitioners.
Nurses develop their capability for practice by working to gain experience and also by helping
others to grow. Nurses are required to obtain information and education that is relevant in their

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line of work. They should also aim at making right decision and taking suitable action on the
health status of patient (Gill, Leslie, Grech & Latour, 2012).
Nurses should determine and promote the important function of nursing and professional
practice influencing the quality of services to the patients. Nurses can achieve this practice by
seeking more knowledge on medication, managing time efficiently, monitoring clinical care for
patients and straitening the interrelationships between nurses and patients. One of the key duties
of registered nurses is to provide relevant information and education to patients to help improve
patients control over their health affairs. Nurses should inform their patients on how to improve
their health as they provide the health care service to them. This practice is essential because if
nurses keep the patients informed of methods and medication to improve their health status,
patients can monitor their progress without requiring the service of healthcare provider
(McSHERRY, Pearce, Grimwood & McSherry, 2012).
Registered nurses needs to understand that they are responsible for their behaviors,
decisions and any action in workplace. This is necessary because it will assist the nurses to be
keen on any activity they undertake. Nursing standards of practice are essential to the nurses
especially when they are performing their duty as well as when they delegate the responsibilities
to their colleagues because it outlines what is required and sets the limits on their roles. Nurses
can improve their capability for practice and maintain this standard by using learning approach
and actively engaging with other professionals (Whitehead, LoBiondo-Wood & Haber, 2012).
Conclusion
The standards of nursing practice establishes the basis for quality healthcare service
delivery to the patients. The standards set guidelines for which performance of nurses can be

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measure against their actual performance. The most crucial purpose of nursing standards is
creating and maintain a safe and competence nursing practice. Nursing standards are used in
coming up with a structure for assessments of nurses’ performance. If nurses breach the
standards of practice, they face consequences that occur after that as provided in the law. In light
of the above, it is necessary for the nurses to follow the standards properly when carrying out
their duties.

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References
Chan, Z. C. (2013). A systematic review of critical thinking in nursing education. Nurse
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