The healthcare team is not made up just of nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and other disciplines but it must also include the patient or the patient’s family. Many times during a hospital stay, a patient’s family or loved ones may observe changes in the patient that the staff is not immediately aware of. “It is therefore essential to put patients at the centre so we can improve their care and act as their advocate” (Lindsay, 2018). One of the many nurse roles is to be a voice for our patients and by being that voice we place our patients as the main focus. Lindsay also tells us that “the patient’s voice needs to be heard at every stage of their experience if meaningful care pathways are to be created” (2018). That stage of advocacy may even be before the patient steps in to the hospital! At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, the hospital made the decision that patient’s could not have a visitor during their hospital stay. I was able to advocate for our surgery patients before they even came in for their surgeries by discussing the harm that could come to surgery patients just waking up from sedation if they do NOT have a family member or friend present. Not only would the surgeon not be able to discuss the procedure or address any potential concerns with the person the patient was going home with after surgery (the patient would not remember any instruction after anesthesia) but the increase in the patients fall risk status would also rise dramatically! Many times patients waking up from anesthesia, whether it be from general anesthesia or moderate sedation, do not heed instructions or simply forget. I advised the Risk Manager and Chief Nursing Officer my concern for patient safety and the policy was immediately amended to allow surgery patients to have a visitor at the bedside.
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