Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Essay

Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations

Introduction

The American health care system is experiencing a swift transformation that is emphasizing the quality and value of care delivered.   In turn, the scope and roles of registered nurses are shifting due to developments in policy and legislation in response to the changing patient needs.  Nursing education should impart novel skills and regulatory frameworks should be restructured to exploit the contributions that registered nurses make in the system. The paper discusses the scope of the future role of advanced registered nurses and the role of professional nursing organizations in advancing the scope and influence of advanced nursing. The paper also discusses an evolving issue most likely to affect a nurse leader and how the issue could influence that nursing profession and other stakehold

APRNs are prepared, by certification, and education, to perform assessment, diagnosis, and management of patient conditions, to make orders for diagnostic tests, and to write prescriptions for medication.  State-specific licensing laws define the scope within which APRNs can of practice, as stated by State Boards of Nursing.  Every state regulates APRNs in some way. Some states license APRNs, some give practice authority through registration, recognition or certificates. In providing APRNs authority to practice beyond their scope of practice, state boards depend on traditional authority mechanisms.  These mechanisms include the requirement of APRNs to graduate from recognized educational programs as well as certification examination. Numerous states depend on national certification programs to gauged APRN’s competency. Typically, APRNs have a graduate-level education and are comprehensively prepared for a certain specialty practice. They then sit for the certification examination provided by a national certification body and adhere to the licensing requirements of their states.

The national council of state boards of nursing ((NCSBN) is a regulatory agency that has tried to standardize the licensure, education, and certification of APRNs.  In 2008, NCSBN, in collaboration with professional nursing organizations, created the APRN Consensus Model. This model offers guidance to state boards of nursing on the execution of APRN education, licensure, accreditation, and certification which are essential for APRN practice. Additionally, it elucidates the lawful APRN scope of practice along with the roles acknowledged for APRNs.  Some states allow APRNs to align with the Consensus Model while other states tremendously limit the ability of APRNs to practice (Litchman et al, 2018).

The creation of the model aimed to make education, licensure, certification and accreditation uniform of APRN standardized across states and endorses the full scope of practice by APRNs, with the vision that it will lead to an improvement in access to quality, safe APRN care (Litchman et al, 2018). The model offers a definitive basis from nurses who plan or choose to pursue advance practice and influence certification corporations, licensing boards, accreditation entities and schools of nursing (Ferell et al, 2019).

Professional nursing organizations most influential in advancing the scope and influence of advanced nursing

Professional nursing organizations provide an effective scheme through which nurses can influence health policy, offer opportunities for continuing education for nurses and represent and safeguard nurses’ interest. The American Nurses Association (ANA), the National Student Nurse Association (NSNA), and the American Organization of Nursing Leadership (AONL) are their professional nursing organization I believe are most influential in advancing the scope and influence of advanced nursing. ANA represents the needs and views of its members in numerous policy arenas.  ANA advances the profession of nursing by lobbying regulatory agencies and the congress on healthcare issues impacting nurses and the general public. The key initiative of ANA is to protect and advance nurses’ scope of practice.   It monitors and advocates for regulatory and legislative changes connected with the scope of practice, intending to eradicate barriers to practice for APRNs and increase access to health care (Matthews, 2012).

The mission of the NSNA’s is to mentor nursing students making preparing to be initially licensed as registered nurses, and conveying skills, ethics, and standards that students require as accountable as responsible leaders and members of the nursing profession (Roux & Halstead, 2017). AONL represents nursing leadership through its mission of shaping healthcare via expert and innovating nursing leadership and its vision of leadership as a major voice of advancing nursing. According to Nunnery (2019), AONL offers professional development training, supports research and advocacy to advance patient care and nursing practice, endorses superiority in nursing care and assists healthcare policy.

Out of the aforementioned professional nursing organizations, I would most like to join NSNA.  Since my area of specialty is a nurse leader, this organization will be of great help to me.  As Roux and Halstead (2017) indicate, the majority of nursing leaders start professional leadership development by becoming members of NSNA in their institution’s chapter and playing the role of leaders.  The experience the students attain as leaders offers them the chance to develop initial leadership skills that they may go on developing as they shift from being leaders as students to the leaders as practicing nurses.

Membership in the NSNA might improve my practice by Joining the professional nursing organization will help me develop my leadership skills as a nurse leader and allow me to have a voice in identifying and developing health policy initiatives. Being part of a professional organization may enhance leadership development, offer opportunities for networking for every member, develop collaboration skills, and possibly lead to career advancement. According to Goolsby and DuBois (2017), membership in an organization within a person’s field offers useful resources and access to the information within their area of specialization. Belonging to an organization might allow executives or leaders to access valuable resources along with intellect that they may not be capable of gaining via formal channels.

Professional nursing organizations usually provide sessions for leadership development at meetings and conferences.   They also provide members with networking and training opportunities to advance their knowledge and skills in their profession (Goolsby and DuBois (2017).   The mission and goals of the NSNA fit in with my worldview and philosophy of nursing care which is is that nurses should provide competent, compassionate, optimal holistic and empathetic care to the best of their ability. I uphold ethical codes of nursing care by offering safe care.

An evolving issue that is most likely to affect the role of the nurse leader    in the next few years

The transforming healthcare system is an issue that is most likely to affect my role in the next few years.  Quality and cost concerns and the changing disease-type and social demographic have created the urgency for the necessity for change.  Strong leadership will be vital for the realization of a changed healthcare system.   Simons et al (2015) claim that the profession of nursing should generate leaders tall through the health care scheme, from the boardroom to bedside, who can fully partner with other healthcare providers and are responsible for their contributions to the delivery of quality care while working in collaboration with other health professionals’ leaders.

All nurses need to be leaders in designing, implementing, evaluating and also advocating for the continuing reforms. Also, nurses will require leadership competencies and skills to operate as full collaborators with physicians along with other professionals in redesigning and reforming efforts across the United States health care system.  Being a full collaborator goes beyond all the nursing profession levels and needs leadership competencies and skills that nurse leaders should apply within the profession and also when collaborating with other professionals (Patton et al, 2018).

The evolving healthcare system could influence the nursing and other stakeholders because they have a vital contribution to the reform that will lead to the delivery of quality, accessible, patient-centered, affordable and safe care. Salmond and Echevarria (2017) claim that delivery of these outcomes, nurses, from staff nurse to chief officer nurse, should have an understanding of the way the nursing practice should be considerably diverse to provide the anticipated quality care and passionately and proactively participate in the reform.  The actuality is that the role of all stakeholders is changing. The role of the nurses, physician, patients as well as other care providers is changing across the whole care continuum.  Reforms will be successful when all professionals work jointly to change and exploit the contribution of every professional who works at the full scope of practice.

Healthcare reform matters to the advanced registered nurse because an individual APRN will be required to examine his or her attitudes, skills and knowledge and whether they place them in a position that they will resist or contribute to the continuing change. These reforms will need an enhanced or new set of skills on population care and wellness, with a transformed focus on care coordination, patient-centered care as well as quality improvement (Salmond & Echevarria, 2017).

Essay References

Ferell, B., Coyle, N., & Paice, J. (2029).  Oxford Textbook of Palliative Nursing. New York: Oxford University Press.

Goolsby, M., & DuBois, J. (2017). Professional organization membership: Advancing the nurse practitioner role.  Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 29 (8), 434-440.

Joseph, M., & Huber, D. (2015). Clinical leadership development and education for nurses: prospects and opportunities. Journal of Healthcare Leadership, 7:55-64.

Litchman, M., Flander, M., & McFarland, M. et al.  (2018). A scoping review of Advanced Practice Registered Nurses Consensus Model Outcomes:  Part four of a four-part series on critical topics identified by the 2015 Nurse Practitioner Research Agenda. Journal of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 30(12), 710-723.

Matthews, J. (2012). Role of Professional Organizations in Advocating for the Nursing Profession.  The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 17(1), Manuscript 1

Nunnery, K. (2019). Advancing your Career: Concepts of Professional Nursing. Philadelphia, PA:  F. A. Davis.

Patton, R., Zalon, M., & Ludwick, R. (2018).  Nurses Making Policy: From Bedside to Boardroom.  New York:  Springer.

Roux, G., & Halstead, J. (2017). Issues and Trends in Nursing. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.

Salmond, S., & Echevarria, M. (2017). Healthcare Transformation and Changing Roles for Nursing.  Orthopaedic Nursing, 36(1), 12-25.

Simons, T., Leroy, H., & Savage, G. (2015). Leading in Health Care Organizations: Improving Safety, Satisfaction, and Financial Performance.  Bingley, U.K: Emerald Publishing Group.

Advanced registered nursing graduates are entering the profession at dynamic time when roles and scope of practice are shifting based on developments in legislation and policy in response to the evolving needs of the health care system. Professional nursing organizations play an important role in making sure the perspectives of advanced registered nurses are heard, and in supporting nurse specialties in their efforts to expand their scope of practice and their full participation throughout the health care system.

For this assignment, you will conduct research on the current scope of practice for your specialty and efforts that are being made to expand that scope and the role of the advanced nurse in positively influencing the health care system. Write a 1,250-1,500-word paper that includes the following:

1.A discussion of the scope of your future role as an advanced registered nurse, including any regulatory, certification, or accreditation agencies that define that scope.

2.A discussion of three professional nursing organizations that you think are most influential in advancing the scope and influence of advanced nursing. Of these organizations, evaluate the one that you would most like to join. How do its goals and mission fit in with your worldview and philosophy of care? How might membership in this organization improve your practice?

3.A discussion of a controversial or evolving issue that is most likely to affect your scope of practice or role in the next few years. How do you think this issue could influence the profession and other stakeholders, and why does it matters to the advanced registered nurse?

You are required to cite five to 10 sources to complete this assignment. Sources must be published within the last 5 years and appropriate for the assignment criteria and nursing content.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center. An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.

You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite. Please refer to the directions in the Student Success Center.

Note.: My area of specialty is the nurse leader/executive.