What is the focus of Standard 15: Resource Utilization?

Standard 15: Resource Utilization emphasizes the effective and efficient use of resources within nursing practice to ensure that care is both high-quality and sustainable. The focus is on planning and providing nursing services in a manner that optimizes the available resources, which includes time, materials, personnel, and finances, while maintaining or enhancing the quality of patient care. This involves strategizing how to allocate resources to achieve the best outcomes for patients, support their health needs, and improve healthcare systems overall.

While the other options touch on elements that involve resource management, they do not encapsulate the primary goal of Standard 15. For instance, the idea of ensuring cost-effectiveness without quality may imply a trade-off that is contrary to the principles of nursing care, which prioritize patient outcomes above mere cost considerations. Similarly, social activities, while they may include community engagement aspects of care, do not align directly with the standard's focus on nursing services themselves. Research on resource management, while important for developing guidelines and policies, is more about generating knowledge rather than the practical application of that knowledge in the context of direct nursing services. Thus, concentrating on planning and providing nursing services is the interpretation that accurately reflects Standard 15's objectives.