Significant changes will shake up the healthcare system in the next few years. Those who will be affected the most are care providers, as patients become more concerned about the quality of care they receive and demand better services.
Fortunately, the healthcare sector is shifting from a system where providers work independently to collaborating to work toward a common goal. When DNPs collaborate with other healthcare providers, it sets the stage for positive changes in nursing practice advancement.
There are several ways in which DNP nurses can foster collaboration to bring desired changes, as explained below.
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Who is a DNP-Prepared Nurse?
A DNP-prepared nurse is an essential healthcare system member who is responsible for contributing to clinical inquiry initiatives and research that improves care delivery.
DNP nurses are considered key players in the future of healthcare as they are focused on clinical applications and possess knowledge that influences healthcare outcomes. They are fully equipped with the skills needed to evaluate and implement the science developed by nurse researchers into clinical practice.
A DNP Degree is in Demand
The healthcare sector’s needs are evolving as patients demand better services. As a result, skilled nursing professionals remain in demand, and job opportunities are expected to rise.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, nursing jobs are expected to rise by 6% by 2031. This expected growth has seen the number of students enrolling in DNP programs increase significantly.
Why get a DNP? The DNP is the highest degree in the nursing field that prepares nurses to become leaders capable of tackling the most complex issues during their day-to-day healthcare delivery. Through prestigious institutions such as Walsh University online, DNP nursing students gain the skills needed to design, implement, manage, and evaluate healthcare systems for excellent service delivery. The program prepares nurses to advance their careers and transform into sought-after leaders in their field.
How Can DNP-Prepared Nurses Collaborate with Other Healthcare Professionals?
DNP nurses must cultivate a respectful working environment with nursing staff and other healthcare professionals. Each member of the team should feel comfortable working together to focus on the welfare of their patients. Here are several tips on how DNP-prepared nurses can build a strong collaborative relationship that eliminates medical errors, injuries and fatalities.
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Communicate Effectively
Despite believing they work as a team; healthcare professionals tend to work autonomously. As a result, interprofessional collaboration is often jeopardized.
Effective communication encourages teamwork within the patient care team and promotes continuity and clarity. As a DNP-prepared nurse, your leadership skills should help you communicate effectively and concisely.
When speaking to other professionals, you should be clear, honest, compassionate and courteous. It is useful to understand how each discipline approaches patient care so you can develop efficient ways of communication.
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Become a Leader
A DNP nurse possesses critical leadership skills that equip them with in-depth knowledge of the nursing practice. This knowledge enables them to apply ethical decision-making skills when evaluating nursing care.
They also possess advanced communication skills that they apply in various modalities when dealing with professionals in different categories. They lead in creating teams of professionals who can work together to meet patient needs and promote interprofessional learning.
All these skills put DNP nurses in control and enable them to manage, delegate, supervise and evaluate a team of healthcare professionals. They also use their problem-solving, critical thinking and organizational skills for effective leadership.
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Handle Conflicts
Unfortunately, conflict in the workplace is unavoidable, even when steps are taken to avoid it. When conflict occurs, it interferes with employee performance, damages relationships and affects healthcare delivery.
However, when handled amicably, issues are solved smoothly, and everyone attains peace of mind so they can deliver care as expected. Through conflict resolution, a DNP nurse can develop a collaborative approach that creates a win-win situation for all parties.
This approach requires both parties to give up something to solve the conflict while ensuring both parties also gain from the situation. As a result, there are no feelings of animosity because none of the parties lost without winning.
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Allow the Sharing Of Information
Healthcare involves the participation of a diverse team of professionals, where members bring together a range of expertise to the task at hand. The setting creates an opportunity for a broad range of ideas and considerations that reduce the chances of miscommunication and costly errors.
To ensure teamwork bears fruit, DNP nurses step in to guarantee there is no disconnect and ensure every team member feels safe sharing information without fear of ridicule.
They create a civil atmosphere that reinforces the value of each member’s contribution. They put clear guidelines in place encouraging team members to listen attentively and offer constructive responses.
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Promote Mutual Respect
Mutual respect is valuable in a healthcare setting. Team members who feel disrespected and undervalued may become defensive, demonstrate a lack of engagement, and fail to cooperate, which reduces their productivity. DNP nurses are trained to become excellent leaders by encouraging team members to be cordial and kind.
They also demonstrate mutual respect by being role models who respect different opinions, whether they favor them or not. They also create a common goal and ensure each member understands and appreciates other people’s efforts.
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Establish Team Goals
Setting goals is an excellent way of providing each healthcare professional with a focused objective to work on. This helps create team unity as tasks and responsibilities are broken down and delegated to each member according to their skills.
Without a common goal, individuals may have different outcomes in mind when pursuing various goals, and the likely outcome is confusion. This often results in poor service delivery.
Having clear team goals and holding frequent meetings to reflect on the progress made is a great way to bring minds together to deliberate on issues. As a result, relationships are built, conflicts are solved, and a strong connection is established.
Why is it So Important For DNP Nurses To Collaborate With Other Professionals In Healthcare?
As healthcare delivery evolves, the need for connection and coordination between healthcare professionals has become increasingly important. Here are some of the benefits of collaboration.
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Improved Patient Care
When healthcare professionals collaborate, they can deliver better medical care to patients. Each team member brings a unique perspective regarding a patient’s condition.
The divergence of views means there is a chance to explore different possibilities of what could be ailing the patient. When the views are brought to the table and discussed, they deliver a more comprehensive and holistic view of the patient.
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Reduced Medical Errors
Communication breakdowns in healthcare bring costly consequences, and sometimes even death. For example, when a patient with diabetes suffers from cardiac arrest, they are treated by a cardiologist and an endocrinologist. A physical therapist and a dietician may get involved in the patient’s journey to recovery, not to mention a group of nurses offering medical care.
When these professionals collaborate, they conduct group discussions. Each team member receives all the information needed to offer the right treatment. Interprofessional collaboration reduces medical errors, increases the quality of care, and reduces the mortality rate.
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Timely Treatment
For a long time, healthcare has been a waiting game where one physician must wait for a result or for another doctor to provide a consultation. This waiting can be costly, and patients’ conditions can get worse in the meantime.
Through collaboration, these bridges are closed in cases where team members are connected and receive timely information. Through open communication and a clear definition of roles, each member understands and performs their duties diligently and understands how information is passed down efficiently.
They also know where and from whom to source specific information, minimizing the time it takes to gather patient data and information. Timely treatment reduces time wastage and improves care delivery, pain, suffering and mortality rates.
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Improved Staff Relationships And Job Satisfaction
Employees want to feel valued and appreciated. When they feel that some members’ voices are prioritized over theirs, they become demoralized and start conflicts to defend their views and opinions.
Collaboration can level the playing field as each team member is recognized as a valuable asset in attaining the overall goals.
As a result, staff members value and respect each other, building trust and enhanced relationships. Additionally, they feel appreciated, which lowers employee turnover and reduces retention, recruitment and training costs.
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Reduced Healthcare Costs
Through interprofessional collaboration, healthcare facilities reduce costs and expenses and can deliver high-quality and affordable healthcare. Improved staff relationships reduce employee turnover and eliminate the need for recruitment, selection and re-training costs.
Additionally, open communication and information sharing ensure an efficient workflow, which saves the healthcare facility operational inefficiencies, money and time.
The Bottom Line
Collaboration in the healthcare sector is vital as it ensures undisrupted care to patients. Patients rely on nurses and other healthcare providers for their well-being. Through leadership and management, DNP nurses can enhance collaboration with other healthcare professionals to ensure efficient and timely delivery of service.
