RN Nursing · Priority Setting and Time Management · Practice question
A charge nurse is evaluating time management strategies used by a newly licensed nurse during a busy shift. Which of the following actions by the nurse indicates effective time management?
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Answering nonurgent phone calls during peak medication administration times.
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Completing tasks for assistive personnel rather than delegating to ensure accuracy.
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Frequently checking the electronic health record between each task without grouping care activities.
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✓
Grouping care activities when entering a client's room to complete multiple tasks at once.
Answer & explanation
Correct: Grouping care activities when entering a client's room to complete multiple tasks at once.
Grouping care activities when entering a client's room to complete multiple tasks at once — often called 'clustering care' — is a hallmark of effective time management in nursing. By combining assessments, medication administration, comfort measures, and teaching into a single room entry, the nurse minimizes time spent traveling between tasks, reduces client interruptions, and preserves protected time for other priorities. This approach also supports client rest and reduces the risk of omitting tasks. Answering nonurgent phone calls during peak medication administration times is a distraction that increases the risk of medication errors and is therefore poor time management. Completing tasks that should be delegated to assistive personnel wastes the nurse's time on non-nursing duties and undermines efficient workflow; delegation to qualified personnel is an appropriate and expected strategy. Frequently checking the electronic health record between each individual task without batching activities fragments the workflow and reduces overall efficiency. Nurses who organize their shifts around clustered care, appropriate delegation, and protected high-priority windows (such as medication administration) consistently demonstrate stronger time management and safer care delivery.
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