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Contextual Overview of Remote Collaboration in Evidence-Based Nursing Practice

Good morning, everybody! Greetings and welcome to this presentation on providing evidence-based care while working remotely. When providing healthcare services to clients who reside far away, particularly those who are dealing with a variety of chronic health concerns, remote cooperation and evidence-based care services are essential. Healthcare practitioners from many professions must be involved in such collaborations. For example, a patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) requires the services of a respiratory therapist, pharmacist, nurse, and pulmonologist. The patient under consideration for this presentation is a 70-year-old man who has been diagnosed with COPD. Due to a lack of medical infrastructure and personnel, the patient's rural home makes it difficult for him to receive specialized healthcare services, particularly pulmonary care. A persistent cough, shortness of breath, and recurrent respiratory infections are just a few of the indications and signs that the client has been exhibiting.

This presentation, which is predicated on a comprehension of the client's particular case scenario, aims to propose an evidence-based care plan to enhance the safety and outcomes of a client with COPD. It also explains how an evidence-based practice (EBP) model can be employed to assist in the development of the patient's care plan, and it contemplates the evidence that is most pertinent and helpful in informing the decisions concerning the patient's care plan. Finally, it identifies the advantages and tactics that can be used to lessen the difficulties encountered in multidisciplinary teamwork or remote collaboration.

Development of an Evidence-Based Care Plan for Fall Prevention in COPD Patients

Firstly, I will discuss an effective evidence-based plan for a patient suffering from COPD. I plan to prevent falls due to weakness in patients with COPD related to decreased oxygen. Impaired balance is particularly concerning because people with COPD have a 55% higher risk of falling than people without the disease (Chauvin et al., 2020). Falls can have disastrous effects, including injuries, impaired functioning, loss of autonomy, a lower quality of life, and a higher likelihood of morbidity and mortality. They are one of the main causes of accidental injury deaths globally.

Balance impairments in older persons with COPD remain severe when compared with age-matched healthy older people utilizing both clinical balance tests and posturography, indicating a connection between the disease and balance impairments even though decreases in balance are normal with aging (McLay et al., 2020). One way to reduce the frequency of falls in people with COPD is to examine a person's balance to see whether they may be in danger of falling and then give them exercises designed specifically for their balance. The most thorough balance assessment instrument for any group is the Balance Evaluation Systems Test (BESTest), which has good construct reliability in COPD patients. The BESTest is made up of six subcomponents that evaluate different balancing domains in accordance with the postural control system structure: biomechanical limitations; stability thresholds/verticality; anticipatory postural adaptations; postural reactions; sensory orientations; and gait stability (Chauvin et al., 2020). The underlying systems causing balance disorders can be identified from these six subcomponents, which can help direct fall prevention therapy.

Additionally, several interventions could help in preventing falls in a patient with COPD resulting from decreased oxygen. First, I will recommend that the patient enroll in a pulmonary rehabilitation program in order to enhance his general functional ability, strength, and tolerance to exercise. This can enhance oxygen use and help alleviate the weakness linked to COPD (Wouters et al., 2020). Second, oxygen therapy would help prevent falls: I will verify whether the patient follows the instructions for oxygen therapy as prescribed. It would help the patient overcome the difficulty of breathing problems, enhancing the standard of the outcome (Cousins, 2023). Sustaining muscle function and lowering tiredness can lead to weakness and falls, depending on optimal oxygenation. Another intervention would be a medication review. I will examine the patient's prescriptions to see which ones might make him more susceptible to dizziness or falls. To reduce these risks, the patient should change drugs or adjust dosages as needed. Patient education could also be part of the patient's care plan.

Application of Evidence-Based Practice Models in Clinical Decision-Making

Next, I will discuss the EBP model I used when developing a care plan for a patient with COPD. Evidence-based decisions are made using EBP models when deciding on the best ways to treat patients with different health concerns. The clinical query, evidence-based sources, sources' dependability, and the sources' importance in comprehending the patient's previous condition, however, formed the foundation of the EBP model that was applied to create the patient's care plan. The EBP model used most frequently with COPD patients is the Johns Hopkins EBP model (Williams et al., 2020).

When searching and using evidence gleaned from diverse evidence-based sources, this model's three processes are taken into account. Therefore, to help me get the information I needed, I first created a practice question while creating the patient's treatment plan using Johns Hopkins EBP model as a reference. The practice question used was: “What should a patient with COPD's care plan take into account the most?” Step two was looking for evidence, which I did after creating the practice question. Using the CRAAP test criteria as a guide to finding reliable sources, I searched for peer-reviewed journal publications. According to this standard, reliable sources are accurate, concise, professionally written, up-to-date, and goal-oriented. Evidence from the resources suggested that medication review, pulmonary rehabilitation, oxygen therapy, and patient education should all be included in an efficient treatment plan. Once the evidence was acquired, I proceeded to the third phase, which involved putting the evidence into practice. Here, the patient is to be treated in accordance with the created care plan.

Evaluation of Evidence Supporting Remote Monitoring and Interdisciplinary Care Approaches

The most pertinent information I found from a variety of sources is that interprofessional cooperation and remote monitoring are essential when creating a care plan for COPD patients. This evidence is supported in different ways. One of them is that people with COPD may experience life-threatening symptoms that call for medical attention from professionals promptly. Therefore, remote monitoring, particularly through telehealth, could help handle such symptoms immediately in place of the client physically traveling to see a physician. That preserves the patient's life in addition to improving their health.

The fact that COPD is a complicated medical condition requiring the assistance of several different healthcare professionals is the other factor. For this reason, an interdisciplinary team is essential to the condition's management. In this instance, a nurse, respiratory therapist, pulmonologist, and pharmacist are the most important healthcare providers required when creating a care plan or treating a patient with COPD. These were the same experts that were taken into consideration in the case study involving an older person with COPD.

Advantages of Remote Collaboration in Enhancing Healthcare Delivery

While supporting patient care based on telehealth technologies, remote cooperation necessitates virtual collaboration. Telehealth makes the delivery of patient care more efficient. It facilitates access to healthcare for those who live in remote locations, hence raising the standard of care (Jnr, 2020). Medical care in remote areas might be difficult due to their geographical position. Virtual collaboration facilitates safe and effective patient care in those underserved locations.

Working together virtually lowers the possibility that the patient's condition will worsen while the team finds a quick fix. Since everyone works together within a set time frame to support the client, there is also less chance that the patient will have to wait. When evaluating patients who live remotely and have serious conditions like COPD, virtual collaboration is important and should be taken into account.

Strategies for Addressing Challenges in Virtual Interprofessional Collaboration

No challenges were experienced throughout the remote collaboration meeting when handling the case study. The team overcame the language hurdle as their choice of language was simple. Everyone had an opportunity to express their thoughts regarding the client's condition, and the team was able to communicate with one another effectively.

Time management is one issue that might arise when working virtually with others. It could be difficult to arrange a time for meet-ups that works for everyone, given that the group only meets digitally and their hectic schedules. Planning meetings and keeping to the timetable would be essential for the team to tackle such a difficulty. While lowering the possibility of medical errors that could impair patient care, time must move in unison. Therefore, the virtual meeting was scheduled at a time that was convenient for everybody.