Nurses in an Emergency Department, in an inner-city neighborhood chara

QUESTION

Nurses in an Emergency Department, in an inner-city neighborhood characterized by high levels of violence, are concerned with low levels of security presence in their department.

Security levels have recently been decreased and the nurses question why this has occurred. An appropriate action would be to:

a. Provide nurses with information about rationale for recent changes in security staffing.
b. Refer the matter to the head of security and let her deal with it.
c. Provide mentors who can help nurses diffuse aggressiveness.
d. Accept the security levels as a consequence of funding realities.

ANSWER:

ANS: A
Workplace advocacy is an umbrella term encompassing activities within the practice setting. Workplace advocacy includes an array of activities undertaken to address the challenges faced by nurses in their practice settings. The focus of these activities is on career development, employment opportunities, terms and conditions of employment, employment rights and protections, control of practice, labor-management relations, occupational health and safety, and employee assistance. The objective of workplace advocacy is to equip nurses to practice in a rapidly changing environment. One manifestation of workplace advocacy is ensuring that relevant information is shared about decisions that affect practice so that further data gathering and decision making (in this instance about security levels and nurse safety) is informed.