Handover Effectiveness: Emergency Departments Paramedics and Other Staff - Research Paper Example

? Designing Research Project Affiliation: QUESTION ONE Handover Effectiveness: Emergency Department’s Paramedics and other staff The emergency department is a very sensitive department whose effectiveness should be highly observed. Activities that the staff in the emergency department engages in are complex and require attention and commitment in order to achieve the desired results. Receiving staff in the ED is one of the ways that the department can be improved. However, the effectiveness between paramedics and the received staff should be maximized for optimal services to be realized. Aim/Hypothesis This research project is set in the ED department integrating the staff therein. Its aim is to evaluate and assess paramedics and received staff on their perceptions about hand over effectiveness. Factors that enable maximization of this effectiveness will be investigated. Constraints evident in the department will be highlighted. These are the factors that downplay effective handover between the paramedics and the staff received by hospitals. Method A qualitative method of study will be employed. The primary component of this method will be characterized by interviews that will be conducted across a hospital setting. In other words, paramedics, nurses and doctors will be interviewed. The number of interviews can vary according to the preference of the researcher, but the number of paramedics interviewed should be higher. A manageable sample size can be 50. Questions asked can vary but revolve around paramedics, receiving of staff by the hospital and how the effectiveness of the workforce can be maximized. Constraints that characterize that process should also be integral of the data gathering process. Results Three professional groups constitute the results to the research project. Each of the three groups presents a theme that is tailored to the assessment of this research project. First a cognitive picture is essential among the staff and paramedics in a hospital. It should be shared among the professionals for effective maximization of handover in the ED department. However, difficulties are evident in that pursuit. Secondly, there seems to be a lacking coordination of doing and listening in effective handover maximization. Finally, communication needs to be fragmented in order to realize the desired results of the research project. Discussion Paramedics are an integral and essential component of the emergency services in the hospital. Effectiveness of the ED in the hospital is fundamental for efficient discharge of duties and responsibilities of paramedics. However, their role in the hospital is also dependent on the other available staff in the hospital. Paramedics and any other staff in the hospital should work together for effective service delivery. Receiving staff and handover should be planned for and effective measures taken to aid the process. This way, handover effectiveness is not bound to be compromised. Conclusion The need for effectiveness handover in the ED cannot be refuted. Paramedics in the ED as well other staff therein needs to employ common language for maximized effectiveness to be realized. Understanding different experiences in the department is also enhanced between paramedic team members. Maximized effective handover can also be realized through standardizing handover approaches. This standard approach should be applicable to paramedics and other staff in the ED. Advantages and Disadvantages of the approach outlined above Qualitative approach to research has a number of advantages. First, this method of research makes it possible for a researcher to gather comprehensive information prior to the topic of study. It enhances in-depth variable evaluation and assessment, thereby yielding resourceful information. Secondly, qualitative method of research enables the researcher to observe and describe the different variables identified in the research. The entire situation that is being studied can therefore be broadly understood. On the other hand, this research method has disadvantages too. Biasness induced by the researcher is hard to control. That is, preventing researcher induced bias is a challenge because it is hard to detect in the first place. This method fails to encompass a broad scope of research due to the fact that approaches to data gathering are comprehensive and it is characterized by an in-depth treatment of variables. QUESTION TWO Mental Illnesses: Paramedic Perceptions Aim/Hypothesis This research project seeks to evaluate paramedic perceptions during such times that paramedics are required to mental illness cases. The perceptions are considered in a broad and diverse spectrum. Such perceptions will be in relation to paramedics’ role in attending to cases of mental illness. The perceptions will also be assessed based on the paramedics’ education, training and qualification. On the same note, paramedic working relationships will be considered to identify whether such relationships affects the perception of paramedics in that pursuit. Method The primary research method for this study is quantitative. Data can be sourced from clinical databases of the SAAS. Surveys and use of focus groups are proper sources of a quantitative method. Where qualitative sources of data will be employed, statistical tools will be used to quantify the data, and thus result in a quantitative method of research. A manageable survey can be around 49.3%, given by a sample size of 74. Descriptive statistical analysis will be used to identify the various paramedic perceptions integral to the variables earlier identified. Data from focus groups and quantitative data from the databases of the SAAS will be the basis through the perceptions will be evaluated. Results Contributory factors to the different perceptions of paramedics in the mental illness line of their duty are based on their workload at each specific case. Time on each scene varies significantly, and so are the perceptions there in. Focus groups maintained that paramedic practice is not the same across paramedics and therefore their perceptions are significantly different. This was evidenced by the variances identified from SAAS databases in relation to paramedic perceptions in the light of mental illness phenomena. Discussion Mental illness management by paramedics varies across different medical practices. Their responses to emergency situations in that line of pursuit are also significantly different. Different perceptions therefore emerge, especially in relation to education and training. Training institutes are committed to the same objective, but the means to achieve those objectives vary. This is why perceptions from different paramedics vary as well. Relationship between different interrelated disciplines also counts in, influenced by organizational culture. Conclusion Mental illness cases are part and parcel of paramedics’ workload. The employment of descriptive variables in the study, and the integration of explanatory terms depict issues in perception of paramedics. Perceptions related to workload are different to those related education and prior training. Working relationships are integral to other services that characterize paramedic duties and responsibilities. This study identifies a gap between paramedic perceptions and paramedic practice. Intensive research into the topic is therefore recommended. Advantages and Disadvantages of the approach outlined above Quantitative research method has a number of advantages. To begin with, the research problem is stated in a very unique way. Problem statement employs specific terms that have already been set for that particular purpose. This method also categorically outlines both dependent and independent variables that are being studied. Another advantage is that the reliability and validity of data can be confirmed by making use of statistical tools under the methodology of the research project. On the same note, judgment subjectivity is highly minimized or eliminated altogether. This method is not without disadvantages. Quantitative research takes a rather fixed structure, consequently fixing research outcomes within a specific scope. Quantitative method of research is weak in controlling research response environment, especially where answers to a survey are to be provided. On the same note, quantitative research method does not promote evolvement and/or investigation continuity of the phenomenon being studied. Read More