CS 1
An 82-year-old patient had an elective total hip replacement on a Monday morning. She lives alone, and all three of her children live out of state. She has a friend, a nurse, who lives locally, who is listed as her durable power of attorney, along with her children. Upon admission, the patient noted that the phone number of her daughter, her primary emergency contact, was incorrect, and she provided the correct information to the clerk, who indicated that the information would be corrected. For 2 days, her postoperative course was uneventful, and her daughter went home on Tuesday night. On Wednesday evening, the patient had a dramatic drop in blood pressure, became delirious, and was transferred to the ICU. The night staff attempted to call the daughter at the phone number that was provided, but it was the wrong number because the correction was never made. The following morning, the daughter called the unit to inquire about her mother. She was told that the mother was not on the unit, and no information could be given out because of HIPAA. The daughter then called the hospital and was told her mother was in the ICU, and then when she called the ICU, she was told that no information could be given out. Subsequently, the daughter contacted the family friend, who provided her with names of the nursing leadership staff and the patient ombudsman. The friend arrived at the hospital within an hour, and the daughter arrived in the afternoon.

Answer the following questions based on the Case Study presented on top. Demonstrate depth and thought in your posting by citing at least 1 peer-reviewed reference for your posting.

CS 1 Questions:

What is the nurse’s primary responsibility for patient advocacy in this situation?
What are 2 steps that should be taken to ensure that this kind of situation doesn’t happen again?