Date of Graduation

Fall 12-17-2021

Document Access

Project/Capstone - Global access

Degree Name

Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)

College/School

School of Nursing and Health Professions

Program

MSN project

Abstract

Problem: Sleep disturbances in long-term care residents are associated with falls, behavioral problems, and increased mortality rates, yet long-term care facilities are traditionally noisy environments at night. Designated quiet hours have been shown to improve patient sleep as well as decrease stress levels in nurses.

Context: In a skilled nursing facility that provides care for military veterans with complex medical and psychosocial needs, signage exists that indicates to be quiet between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., but no defined guidelines were available for staff to observe.

Interventions: Standards for quiet hours were established and posted throughout the microsystem. Lecture-style teaching was conducted over an 11-day period during the evening and night shift change huddles. Staff were provided a supplemental handout on the newly established guidelines for quiet hours, the importance of undisturbed sleep, and approaches to minimizing sleep disruptions.

Measures: Outcome measures focused on capturing initial competency data from 100% of the evening and night shift staff immediately following educational sessions.

Results: Thirty of the 37 evening and night shift staff members attended an education session, received the education handout, and successfully completed the competency worksheet, accounting for 81.1% of total staff.

Conclusions: Continued efforts are necessary to reach and maintain 100% staff education of quiet hours. Introduction of a quiet hours champion role can help to ensure the sustainability, longevity, and possible expansion of this improvement.

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