A busy ICU unit has a high noise level. This frustrates the ...

[neverstopbelieb]

A busy ICU unit has a high noise level. This frustrates the charge nurse in part because it is difficult to focus when entering physician's orders into the electronic medical record.
 
  Which would be the most appropriate action by the ICU nurse manager? 1. Decrease the noise level on the unit.
  2. Tell the staff members that they need to be quiet when sitting at the nurse's station.
  3. Close the doors to the client's rooms.
  4. Rearrange the space so that an area that is quieter is available for order entry.

Question 2

The nurse manager assesses that there is conflict between two of the charge nurses. The decision is made to postpone an intervention and allow the conflict to escalate. Why might the nurse manager make this decision?
 
  1. Allow sufficient time for the problem to spontaneously resolve.
  2. Motivate the participants to seek resolution.
  3. Give the nurse manager time to identify problem-solving strategies.
  4. Relieve the nurse manager of the time commitment necessary to intervene.

[makaylafy]

Answer to Question 1

4
Rationale 1: The long-term plan would be to work on lowering the noise level on the unit, but busy ICU units tend to be noisy.
Rationale 2: Telling the staff to be quiet may create the additional stress of a disgruntled staff.
Rationale 3: Closing the doors to client rooms is not always possible and those rooms are generally not the areas where the excessive noise is produced.
Rationale 4: The most logical of these options is to rearrange the area so that order entry can be done in a quieter environment.
Global Rationale:

Answer to Question 2

2
Rationale 1: The problem is unlikely to spontaneously resolve or just go away no matter how much time is allowed. It is the responsibility of the participants to identify problem-solving strategies.
Rationale 2: The nurse manager may delay intervention to allow the conflict to escalate because increased intensity can motivate participants to seek resolution. The nurses would still actively work to resolve the issue.
Rationale 3: The nurse manger would facilitate the identification of problem-solving strategies by the participants. The manager does not need to shoulder the responsibility of solving the problem.
Rationale 4: Preventing the nurse manager from intervening is incorrect because although conflict management does take time, at times it is beneficial to allow the parties to seek resolution. Delay is not designed to relieve the manager from the responsibility of intervening if necessary.
Global Rationale: