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Ask the expert: Encouraging staff nurses to participate in peer reviews

HCPro's Weekly Update on the ANCC Magnet Recognition Program®*, July 17, 2007

This week, a reader asks about opportunities for staff nurses to participate in peer reviews. Read the response below from our advisor Dorothy A. Garman, RN, MSN, ANCC Magnet Recognition Program® coordinator, coordinator of nursing professional development and patient education, Newport Hospital, Newport, RI.

Q: What opportunities are there for staff nurses to participate in peer reviews?

A: Many organizations offer opportunities for nursing staff to participate in various types of peer review on different levels. For example, peer review can be an integral part of the clinical ladder advancement process in which the registered nurse applying for advancement on the ladder is required to submit his or her clinical ladder portfolio to a peer for review. The peer in turn is asked to review and write a recommendation in support of the applicant's request for advancement. This type of evaluation can be beneficial to the review process because it facilitates peer feedback by one who is practicing at the point of care and who has an appreciation for and understands what excellence in practice looks like.

Using the same scenario, peer review can occur on a broader level if the clinical ladder portfolio is then forwarded to a clinical ladder credentialing committee where membership consists of nursing staff who have successfully advanced on the ladder and who can accurately speak to, understand, and relate to the clinical ladder requirements, and therefore evaluate the applicant accurately and without bias.

A type of peer review is evident in the role of the preceptor whose job it is to continuously provide feedback on the performance of the preceptee. Preceptors are highly instrumental in the peer review process at this level.

Another type of peer review can be part of the annual performance appraisal process. Nursing staff, as a component of the 360-degree evaluation process, ask a predetermined number of peers to each submit a confidential evaluation.

A different form of peer review from those already discussed is a formalized process to evaluate incident-based situations in which the clinical care given by a nurse comes under question. This type of formal peer review is becoming more common as it allows nurses to be evaluated by their peers.

In summary, peer review can take place on many levels but the important thing is to keep in mind that it must be structured and part of a formalized process.

Editor's note: Do you have a question for one of our advisors? If you'd like us to consider your query for publication, please send it to Cameran Erny.

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