The nurse manager for a busy medical unit in an acute care hospital noticed a trend of complaints regarding the restful environment of the unit in the patient satisfaction reports

Question

At the staff meeting, this issue was discussed with the staff, and they decide that the best thing to do is which of the following? a. Administer sleeping medications at 2200 hours.
b. Cluster nursing activities at night.
c. Turn off all alarms after 2200.
d. Keep lights on in the main hallway for safety reasons.

Answer 1

B
A challenge in the hospital is controlling noise. Because many patients spend only a short time in hospitals, it is easy to forget the importance of establishing good sleep conditions.
In the hospital setting, plan nursing care activities to avoid awakening patients. Try to schedule assessments, treatments, procedures, and routines for times when patients are awake. Perform nursing activities before the patient receives sleeping medication or begins to fall asleep. For example, you have a patient who has had surgery. Before the patient gets ready for bed, change the surgical dressing, reposition the patient, administer pain medication, and check vital signs (clustering nursing activities). Turning alarms off is a violation of safety protocols in most hospitals because of patient safety concerns. Lights on in the hallway can cause distraction to sleep patterns. Regular use of any sleep medication leads to tolerance, and withdrawal causes rebound insomnia.