Nursing Prioritization Delegation Assignment Q 14
The nurse is caring for a client with a vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE) infection. Which action can be delegated to the nursing assistant?
A. Implement contact precautions when caring for the client.
B. Monitor the results of ordered laboratory culture and sensitivity tests.
C. Teach the client and family members about means to prevent transmission of VRE.
D. Interact with other departments when the client is transported for ordered tests.
Correct Answer: A. Implement contact precautions when caring for the client
Correct implementation of contact precautions should be well-known by the hospital staff. Depending on daily needs, this can involve changing soiled sheets, cleaning up spills, changing bedpans, setting up equipment, and reducing the spread of germs and infection in the patient’s living area.
Option B: The key item identified by the American Nurses Association as being unable to be delegated is the nursing process itself. This notably includes any task that requires nursing judgment (or critical judgments) or decision making.
Option C: Education is a complex action that should be carried out by an RN. If a CNA does something that is not in their scope of work, the hospital is within their rights to dismiss them or at least issue them with a warning.
Option D: Appropriate delegation allows for responsibility transition in a consistent, safe manner. The RN transfers the performance of a procedure, skill, or activity to a CNA. However, the practice of pervasive functions of critical decisions, nursing judgment, and clinical reasoning cannot be delegated.