Read Case Study \" Room 406 \" and answer the following questions in 2-3 page pa
ID: 410400 • Letter: R
Question
Read Case Study "Room 406" and answer the following questions in 2-3 page paper
Room 406
It was 4:56 P.M. on the surgical floor of Collins Memorial Hospital. Nurse Rhoda Fleming, an efficient head nurse with 15 years of experience, was in charge of the floor that afternoon. As is the case in many hospitals, she had responsibility for several patients herself as well as assuming supervisory responsibilities over other floor nurses. Making a final room check of her own patients prior to the arrival of her 5:00 P.M. relief, in Room 406 she found that Mr. Henry Youstra, who had undergone surgery the week before and not done well, had died. She pulled the sheet over the face of the body and made a mental note to tell her relief to empty the room for a new patient, bed space being especially important at this time in the hospital. After finishing her check she returned to the floor desk. The evening shift supervisor, Anne Simmons, had already arrived, and was waiting at the desk. “Hi, Anne. 406 just died, so that room’s all set to go again. Too bad. We can certainly use the space, though.” “That’s for sure. Has 411 had her shot yet? Dr. Alpers really climbed on me yesterday about it. You know how he is.” “No, not yet. You’d better do that right away.” “Does the office know that 406 is ready?” “No, you’ll need to call them after you get things taken care of.” Nurse Supervisor Fleming then left, and Simmons gave 411 her shot and went about other duties, droppping in on her own patients, and chatting with nurses on the shift. At 5:45 P.M. she called the office and told them that room 406 was ready for occupancy, though she had not checked the room herself. She was told that a patient would be moved from recovery and would ultimately occupy 406. Visitors’ hours began at 7:00 P.M. at the hospital. As she had been doing three times daily throughout the week, as the fourth floor elevator doors opened, Mrs. Henry Youstra walked out and went down the hall to visit her husband. At 8:00 P.M., the end of visiting hours, Nurse Super- visor Simmons checked each of her assigned patient rooms to see that visitors had left. In room 406 she found Mrs. Youstra dead on the floor beside the bed containing her husband’s body.
1. Explain how “noise” impeded an accurate communication between shift supervisors Fleming and Simmons in this incident.
2. What barriers to communication existed in the situation?
3. How might this miscommunication have been avoided?
Explanation / Answer
1. The ‘noise’ impeded an accurate communication between Fleming and Simmons in this case because both were in a hurry during communication and do not give much attention to what the other person was telling which caused the disturbance in communication. Fleming was in a hurry to complete her shift and go home which made her to forget that the dead body is still to be moved from the room 406 and is not ready yet for new patient. Simmons was also in a hurry to give shot to the patient in room 411 under the influence of Dr. Alpers and forgot to check the room 406 and informed the office that the room is ready for occupancy. All these lead to miscommunication which later resulted into the death of Mrs. Henry Youstra.
2. The barriers in the communication of Nurse Fleming included her hurry to leave the hospital as her shift was completed. The barriers to the communication of nurse Simmons is her over anxiety on giving shot to the patient in room number 411 as she already faced a difficult situation with Dr. Alpers regarding the same issue.
3. This miscommunication would have been avoided if both of them paid little more attention to what others are saying and documented the tasks that need to be carried out. Nurse Fleming should have shown more responsibility in handling a dead body before informing Simmons on the availability on the room and should have recorded in writing what needs to be done by the next shift person. Nurse Simmons also was in a hurry to give shot to the patient in 411 and did not check the room before informing the office that the room is ready for occupancy. Making a checklist on the actionable would help to avoid this kind of miscommunications and the death of Mrs. Henry Youstra could have been avoided.
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