Above all else, a nurse’s first priority is to provide high-quality care to his or her patients.

What comes after that can be different for every nurse, but likely the most common secondary goal is to be as efficient and productive as possible. Each nurse has his or her own tried-and-true methods forincreasing efficiencyand productivity, but sometimes it can be a good idea to think outside the box.

Here are four unexpectedways to improve nursing productivity.

1. Standardize Exam and Patient Rooms

效率suffers when nurses have to change the way they perform procedures in every patient room because the equipment and supplies are in different places. On top of that, it’s frustrating for the nurses.

Not only should regularly used supplies such as gloves, IV start kits, gauze and局部麻醉药always be stocked, but these supplies and equipment should be in the same location in every room. Knowing where everything is, regardless of which room the nurse is in, allows him or her to concentrate on the care they are providing, which can decrease procedure time.

Hospital staff also should agree on a standard set of supplies to keep in each room. Personal preferences should be set aside and instead the focus should be on maximizing efficiency and reducing unnecessary variation.

2.安排一致访问直接护理资源

Even the most experienced nurse can’t handle every aspect of a patient’s care on his or her own. He or she needs the support of healthcare professionals, care technicians and other assistive personnel to make sure patient needs are satisfied.

To ensure nurses have dependable levels of support staff, written staffing plans should be provided for each shift and should show the availability of staff resources such as the clinical pharmacist, hospitalist, patient transport team, rehabilitation technician and wound care specialist.

他们不必担心他们是否有支持员工的支持，或者是否负责患者护理的某些部位，他们可以以跨学科的方式专注于主要职责。

3. Maintain Positive Employee Morale

The management team likely already knows encouraging and empowering hospital staffimproves retention and decreases turnover, but they may not realize promoting a positive work atmosphere can also increase productivity.

In a high-pressure, fast-paced hospital environment, it’s easy for nurses to feel overwhelmed, and high levels of stress can affect a nurse’s ability to maintain efficiency. However, when nurses feel recognized for their hard work, it can motivate them to push through the especially challenging shifts.

向护士表示感谢不一定要成为一个宏伟的手势 - 它可能像手写笔记一样小，感谢他们对患者的奉献精神或将他们享用美味的午餐。

4.进行床头血液测试

医院就诊通常需要进行血液检查。标准程序是供医学专家抽血，并将样本发送到位于医院其他地方的实验室，实验室技术人员将测试样品并记录结果。一旦将结果输入到计算机系统中，护士或医师就会对其进行审查。此过程可能需要几个小时，具体取决于队列的长度。

However, rather than using a centralized processing system, performing bedside blood testing (also known as point-of-care testing) can reduce service time and allow providers to make diagnoses faster and begin treatment sooner. Additionally,according to a 2012 study，已显示床旁血液测试可降低72小时的再入院率。

尽管有许多众所周知的提高护理生产率的方法，例如使用healthcare technology,delegating appropriately and reducing time spent on non-clinical tasks—it’s important for everyone from staff nurses to hospital management to consider some less common ways to boost efficiency. Try implementing some of the tips above in your hospital. You may be surprised by the results.

High patient satisfaction levels can increase compliance, lead to better outcomes and reduce readmission rates—all of which help efficiency. Learn how patient-centered care affects patient satisfaction in our free eBook,护士如何通过以患者为中心的护理提高满意度。