The success of healthcare organizations in the modern world depend largely on the effectiveness of their change initiatives. Often, organizations implement change initiatives with the aim of improving their systems and processes. Change also enables them to respond effectively to unforeseen events in their markets. Healthcare providers play a crucial role in facilitating the successful implementation of change for outcomes such as safety, quality, and efficiency. Nurses embrace interdisciplinary collaboration for optimum change outcomes in their practice. The collaboration helps them to learn from others’ perspectives and adapt to different approaches to undertaking assigned roles. Evidence-based strategies should be utilized in implementing change for optimum outcomes (Ellis, 2022) . Therefore, this presentation focuses on an interdisciplinary plan to address the rising rates of catheter-associated urinary tract infections in the medical and surgical floors in my practice site.
The selected organizational issue is catheter-associated urinary tract infections. An interview performed with a nurse manager of a medical ward revealed that the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infections have been rising over the last quarter in both the medical and surgical floors. The recent statistics showed that the rate was higher than the benchmark data for the hospital. Catheter-associated urinary tract infections are part of hospital acquired infections that threaten the safety, quality, and efficiency of patient care. Therefore, unlike other problems identified from the interview, catheter-associated urinary tract infections have the potentials of causing unintended harms to the patients. In addition, nurses and other healthcare providers should implement interventions to prevent it, since it is associated with hospital interventions, hence, its selection for the project.
Catheter-associated urinary tract infections are significant to the practice site because of several factors. First, catheter-associated urinary tract infections threaten the safety, quality, and efficiency of care that the organization offers to its patients. A further rise in rates is likely to affect the reimbursement the hospital receives since catheter-associated urinary tract infections are safety and quality indicators that influence reimbursement for hospitals. The rates of catheter-associated urinary tract infections have also risen, translating into the need for a responsive intervention. The rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infections is also high in the USA. Accordingly, statistics shows that they contribute up to 1 million cases annually in the USA. In addition, the costs that the country incurs in treating catheter-associated urinary tract infections ranges between $115 million and $1.82 billion annually. Catheter-associated urinary tract infections also contribute to increased hospital costs and stays for the patients. The increase in costs is attributed to the additional care needed to treat and prevent its associated complications (Letica-Kriegel et al., 2019). The hospital stays arises from the fact that patients may develop complications such as septicemia, which demand complex management. Prolonged hospitalization also decreases patients’ productivity and quality of life. For example, complications such as septicemia may cause additional organ damage, leading a decline in one’s quality of life and increased disease burden (Atkins et al., 2020). Therefore, interventions to prevent, minimize, and prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections are essential.