The main difference between registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) is their scope of duties. While LPNs provide basic-level nursing care under the supervision of RN, such as monitoring patients’ blood pressure or assisting patients in feeding and dressing them, RNs have a range of additional functions. For example, RNs are allowed to operate medical equipment, collect samples, and administer medication. Thus, making changes in the nursing team’s positions can significantly influence the workflow during the shift.
The team nursing care-delivery model implies a division of roles between team members. The division of roles also instills a strong sense of responsibility for patients. In general, LPNs provide assistance to RNs, and LPNs are usually allowed to work with less complicated and more stable patients (Beckett et al., 2021). Furthermore, LPNs supervise the work of unlicensed assistive personnel (UAP), optimizing the overall team’s education and qualification. Thus, removing one link from the system (LPNs) and replacing it with another (RNs) will affect the care delivery model. The change will affect the responsibility dynamics in the team, eventually leading to a lack of staff for delegation of tasks.
The improper delegation, sourced in mismatches of authority and accountability in the team, can affect patient care. The lack of LPNs for RNs’ assistance can potentially result in RNs delegating tasks to UAP. Furthermore, with a lack of direct supervision of the delegated tasks, UAP presents a threat to patients’ safety. Thus, violation of delegation rules can result in professional malpractice lawsuits for RNs. Therefore, before making changes to the requirements to hire more experienced RNs instead of LPNs, Miguel should consider the potential impact of the change on the team’s workflow. Miguel can also address the lack of staff for delegation of tasks by hiring more LPNs and UAP.
Reference
Beckett, C. D., Zadvinskis, I. M., Dean, J., Iseler, J., Powell, J. M., & Buck-Maxwell, B. (2021). An integrative review of team nursing and delegation: Implications for nurse staffing during COVID-19. Worldviews on Evidence-based Nursing, 18(4), 251–260.