Running Head: ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS TASK 1
1
Organizational Systems and Quality
Leadership: C489: Task 1
Name
Western Governors University
, ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS TASK 2
1
A. Understanding of Nursing Quality Indicators
In the early 1990s, the American Nurses Association (ANA) began to assess whether
patient outcomes could be linked to the staffing levels of nurses. In 1994, the ANA Board of
Directors asked for the ANA to take it a step further. Studies funded by the ANA were
conducted across the United States to determine if a correlation existed between nurse staffing
levels and the quality of care provided. These studies resulted in many quality indicators being
identified; eventually, these were narrowed down to 10 nursing-sensitive indicators which could
be used to evaluate the quality of patient care (Montalvo, 2007). The nursing-sensitive indicators
were patient outcomes that could be directly attributed to the level and quality of the care nurses
provided and were separate from medical quality of care indicators. The ANA determined that in
order to determine how many nurses per patient was adequate, three types of indicators, sensitive
to nursing care and collected at the unit level, would need to be collected and examined.
Structure indicators of care are related to things like staffing levels; a unit staffed with more
registered nurses can have improved patient outcomes. Process-related indicators are how a
nurse carries out their patient care and is often driven by an organization's policies and
procedures. Other indicators are outcome related that can be linked to nursing care such as a
hospital-acquired infection or pressure ulcer (Sauls, 2013).
To further assess the factors that affected the quality of nursing care, the ANA
established the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) which is built upon
the principles that nursing has a responsibility to protect a patient’s health and welfare and to
continually enhance the quality of care they provide (Montalvo, 2007). The list of nursing-
sensitive indicators has been updated since the original 10 NDNQI indicators that the ANA
endorsed but the goal remains the same, to assist the nurse in their patient safety and quality
improvement
1
Organizational Systems and Quality
Leadership: C489: Task 1
Name
Western Governors University
, ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEMS TASK 2
1
A. Understanding of Nursing Quality Indicators
In the early 1990s, the American Nurses Association (ANA) began to assess whether
patient outcomes could be linked to the staffing levels of nurses. In 1994, the ANA Board of
Directors asked for the ANA to take it a step further. Studies funded by the ANA were
conducted across the United States to determine if a correlation existed between nurse staffing
levels and the quality of care provided. These studies resulted in many quality indicators being
identified; eventually, these were narrowed down to 10 nursing-sensitive indicators which could
be used to evaluate the quality of patient care (Montalvo, 2007). The nursing-sensitive indicators
were patient outcomes that could be directly attributed to the level and quality of the care nurses
provided and were separate from medical quality of care indicators. The ANA determined that in
order to determine how many nurses per patient was adequate, three types of indicators, sensitive
to nursing care and collected at the unit level, would need to be collected and examined.
Structure indicators of care are related to things like staffing levels; a unit staffed with more
registered nurses can have improved patient outcomes. Process-related indicators are how a
nurse carries out their patient care and is often driven by an organization's policies and
procedures. Other indicators are outcome related that can be linked to nursing care such as a
hospital-acquired infection or pressure ulcer (Sauls, 2013).
To further assess the factors that affected the quality of nursing care, the ANA
established the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) which is built upon
the principles that nursing has a responsibility to protect a patient’s health and welfare and to
continually enhance the quality of care they provide (Montalvo, 2007). The list of nursing-
sensitive indicators has been updated since the original 10 NDNQI indicators that the ANA
endorsed but the goal remains the same, to assist the nurse in their patient safety and quality
improvement
