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Administration of Medication by Enrolled Nurses
Anne Kimberley
Coordinator Postgraduate Programs, Centre for Nursing Education, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Nedlands WA
Helen Myers
Clinical Nurse Consultant (Research), Centre for Nursing Research, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital; Lecturer, School of Nursing and Public Health, Edith Cowan University, Perth WA
Sue Davis
Nurse Director, Corporate Nursing, Research and Education, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Nedlands WA
Penny Keogh
Coordinator, Continuing Education, Centre for Nursing Education, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Nedlands WA
Di Twigg
Area Executive Director, Nursing Services, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and North Metropolitan Health Service; Senior Lecturer, Edith Cowan University, Perth WA
Abstract
This paper describes an initiative undertaken at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital in Perth, Western Australia to enhance the professional development of enrolled nurses to allow them to administer medications without the direct supervision of a registered nurse.
This practice change proved to be a positive step for the hospital and for enrolled nurses. Benefits for patients were identified as greater continuity of care and increased timeliness of medication administration. The benefits for enrolled nurses were increased job satisfaction, improved morale and self esteem while the main benefit for registered nurses was decreased stress and workload.
Keywords
enrolled nurses, scope of nursing practice, professional practice, decision making framework, medication administration
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