A patient is admitted to the hospital for hip replacement surgery after falling at home and breaking a hip. The patient has developed pneumonia while in the hospital and has required fre-quent suctioning from the tracheostomy

Question

The nurse decides to delegate I&O to the unlicensed assistive personnel but does not delegate suctioning. This is an example of which of the five rights of delegation? a. Right task
b. Right direction/communication
c. Right intervention
d. Right supervision

Answer 1

A
This is the right task because the nurse delegated I&O, but not tracheostomy suctioning. The right task is one that you can delegate for a specific patient, such as tasks that are repetitive, re-quire little supervision, are relatively noninvasive, have results that are predictable, and have mi-nimal potential risk. Right direction/communication involves the following: Give a clear, concise description of the task, including its objective, limits, and expectations. Communication must be ongoing between the nurse and nursing assistive personnel during a shift of care. There is no "right" for an intervention. Right supervision includes the following: Provide appropriate moni-toring, evaluation, intervention as needed, and feedback. Nursing assistive personnel should feel comfortable asking questions and seeking assistance.