The Critical Role of the Staff Nurse in Antimicrobial Stewardship--Unrecognized, but Already There.
An essential participant in antimicrobial stewardship who has been unrecognized and underutilized is the "staff nurse." Although the role of staff nurses has not formally been recognized in guidelines for implementing and operating antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) or defined in the medical literature, they have always performed numerous functions that are integral to successful antimicrobial stewardship. Nurses are antibiotic first responders, central communicators, coordinators of care, as well as 24-hour monitors of patient status, safety, and response to antibiotic therapy. An operational analysis of inpatient admissions evaluates these nursing stewardship activities and analyzes the potential benefits of nurses' formal education about, and inclusion into, ASPs.
Hallmark Health System, Inc., Melrose-Wakefield Hospital.
Richard N
RN
Olans
MGH Institute of Health Professions - School of Nursing, Boston.
Rita D
RD
Olans
Bureau of Infectious Disease, Massachusetts Department of Health, William A. Hinton State Laboratory Institute, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts.
Alfred
A
DeMaria
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D008499:Medical Records; D024802:Nurse's Role; D010607:Pharmacy Service, Hospital / Q000592:standards*
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
antibiotic resistance; antimicrobial stewardship; antimicrobial stewardship program; nursing; turnaround time