Future scope, role and professional obligations

Part 1. Scope of future role as an advanced registered nurse

Even as I qualify to be an advanced registered nurse, I aspire to become a nurse educator. I anticipate that a role as an educator will allow me to engage students in the formal academic nursing education process. I perceive that the anticipated educator role is a specialty area that exists within the scope of general nursing practice. My scope of practice as a nurse educator will be dependent on four factors. The first factor is having the qualifications to complete the professional tasks associated with the educator role. Educator qualifications are determined by factor requirements that are determined by regulatory authorities and are unique to each educational institution. They are based on the conditions determined by…

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:

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.
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?
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.

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: 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. 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? 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.

Future scope, role and professional obligations

Part 1. Scope of future role as an advanced registered nurse

Even as I qualify to be an advanced registered nurse, I aspire to become a nurse educator. I anticipate that a role as an educator will allow me to engage students in the formal academic nursing education process. I perceive that the anticipated educator role is a specialty area that exists within the scope of general nursing practice. My scope of practice as a nurse educator will be dependent on four factors. The first factor is having the qualifications to complete the professional tasks associated with the educator role. Educator qualifications are determined by factor requirements that are determined by regulatory authorities and are unique to each educational institution. They are based on the conditions determined by regulatory agencies, accreditation organizations and each institutions expectations. Understandably, there are general qualifications that every educator must have in order to be considered for practice in the USA irrespective of the education institution. Some of these general qualifications include having at least a post-graduate level of education as well as an active current nursing license and advanced practice credentials issued by the state authorities (Christensen & Simmons, 2019).

The second factor is being academically prepared to be an educator. There is a need for preparation in the nursing practice specialty. In addition, doctoral level of education is preferred although a masters’ level of level of education could also be accepted for nursing students seeking to practice at the lower levels. Besides that, there are educational institutions that could accept graduate degrees and non-nursing majors if the individual has an initial nursing degree. Education institutions focusing on preparing nursing students to engage in research as part of their practice will typically require educators with doctoral education level as they have extensive experience in conducting research. Institutions that focus on preparing students to practice as nurses will typically accept qualifications at the doctor of nursing practice (DNP) levels. Also, educators who completed educational theory and practice courses are preferred since they have scholastic and instructive backgrounds (Christensen & Simmons, 2019).

The third factor is the type of engagement that could either be tenured or non-tenured. Tenured engagement indicates that the educator meets all the academic standards set by the institution. This allows the educator to gain greater permanency at the education institution while enjoying greater academic autonomy since the position enjoys better work terms and protection. Non-tenured engagement indicates that the educator does not meet all the academic standards set by the institution. This restricts the educator to work with contracts that have a defined practice period that could be renewed. Unlike their tenured counterparts, non-tenured educators do not enjoy permanency or academic autonomy, and do not enjoy much job protection so that there is always a possibility of losing the position (Shellenbarger, 2019).

The fourth factor is the associated educator responsibilities and roles. Like any other employment position, an educator is expected to take on responsibilities and roles not limited to research, practice, teaching, and advising. Each institution, rank and engagement has unique expectations for performing each role. In addition, an educator can perform the roles in different education settings, which include and are not limited to laboratory and simulation settings, health care organizations, classrooms, and distance learning (online). Besides that, they can engage in a scholarship role that entails disseminating new information through presentations and publications, conducting research activities to generate new knowledge, translating evidence into nursing practice, and advancing nursing educational practice and theory. Additionally, they can engage in service provision role that includes advocacy and influencing policy, consulting, developing and evaluating curriculum, managing programs, and participating in health committees (Shellenbarger, 2019).

The National League for Nursing (NLN) is an accreditation agency that defines the scope of practice for nurse educators. The NLN is the national agency that has been assigned the responsibility of ensuring that nurse educators are accredited. It accredits nurse educators. NLN’s accrediting authority is exercised through the Commission for Nursing Education Accreditation (CNEA), an arm of the NLN that has the sole responsibility of accrediting nurse educators. CNEA accreditation activities are guided by the core values of excellence, integrity, diversity and caring (Christensen & Simmons, 2019). In addition to accreditation by NLN through CNEA, nurse educators receive certification from the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (NCCA), an agency that functions under the auspices and authority of the National Organization for Competency Assurance (NOCA). NCCA has the sole responsibility of ensuring that the certification programs nurse educators are subjected to adhere to the modern certification practice standards (Christensen & Simmons, 2019).

There are two certification programs for nurse educators. The first certification program is the certified nurse education certification that allows nurse educators that facilitate learning activities in nursing schools through designing curriculum, teaching, advisement and evaluation. The second certification program is the certified academic nurse educator certification that facilitates learning activities throughout the clinical components (Christensen & Simmons, 2019). Other than the mentioned agencies, the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) also define the scope of practice for nurse educators through defining the minimum educator requirements and ensuring that the offered nurse education is of the right quality (Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, 2020).

Part 2. Three professional nursing organizations that influence scope and influence of advanced nursing

The three professional nursing organizations that have the most influence on the scope and influences of advanced nursing are the National League for Nursing (NLN), American Association for Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and Organization for Associate Degree Nursing (OADN). Firstly, the NLN is the premier nurse educator organization that focuses on ensuring nursing excellences through presenting tools for professional development, teaching resources, research grants, and testing services for its members. In addition, it offers nurse educators credentialing services (National League of Nursing, 2020). Secondly, the AACN is a national agency that seeks to improve the quality of nursing academics through promoting professional nursing education, research and practice. Its objective is to improve health care while establishing quality standards for education, helping nursing schools to implement the standards, and supporting professional nursing practice (American Association for Colleges of Nursing, 2020). Thirdly, the OADN is the national agency that acts as the voice of nurses with associate degree nursing (ADN) qualification. Its responsibilities focus on ADN to include promoting an idealized future, strengthening professional roles, and enhancing the quality of education. In addition, the agency facilitate unity within the nursing profession, disseminates information, facilities nursing profession unity, and supports networking through partnering with other nursing organizations (Organization for Associate Degree Nursing, 2020).

Between the three organizations, I consider the NLN as being the most influential organization. The NLN was founded in 1893, and is officially considered the first nursing organization formed in the USA. It has the mission of promoting excellence in nursing education by building a strong and diverse nursing workforce capable of advancing the health agenda in both the national and global arenas. It is distinct from AACN and OADN whose agendas are restricted to the USA. In fact, the NLN operates in the USA and globally to embody the concept of diversity. NLN membership exemplifies its mission/agenda, drawing membership from nurse educators, the public, education agencies, and health care agencies. Its current membership roster comprised of approximately 37,000 individuals and 1,200 institutions. NLN members enjoy access to development programs, networking opportunities, nursing research grants, testing and assessment, and public policy initiatives intended to facilitate professional growth and development. In its century long operational history, the NLN has repeatedly revised its objectives, and renewed itself to remain relevant to improving, enhancing and expanding nursing services while championing efforts to deliver quality nursing education (National League of Nursing, 2020).

The goals and mission of NLN fit with my worldview and philosophy of care. The organization embodies that prevailing reality that nursing always has room for improvement since what is considered modern today could become obsolete tomorrow. As a member of NLN, I am assured of networking opportunities with diverse nurse populations practicing nationally and globally. This will allow me engage a diverse pool of diverse nurse professional talents who will challenge me to improve. In addition, the organization will offer me education and research opportunities as well as access to current evidence that enhance my professional capabilities, as well as access to current evidence. Overall, the NLN enable me access a wider range of resources to improve my professional nursing skills and knowledge.

Part 3. Evolving issue likely to affect scope of practice and role

Technological advances is an evolving issue that is likely to affect the scope of nurse educators’ practice and role. Today’s education environment is unique since it has access to information and communication tools intended to facilitate learning efforts. This is particularly seen with e-learning that makes use of online tools as well as technologically advanced simulators, curricula, models and techniques. In fact, e-learning has become a popular tool for eliminating distance concerns in education through allowing clinical knowledge to be imparted and nursing classes to be taught to participants across long distances. Currently, it is not uncommon for a student in Asia to attend a nursing school in the USA without having to travel to the USA. E-learning was unknown two decades ago but it has not become a normalcy (Morelock, 2019).

Although e-learning addresses concerns about distance through augmenting the learning delivery system, they present unique education challenges. Some of these challenges include how to justify the cost concerns, how to verify the learners’ identities and actual attendance, data security concerns, and how to handle practical knowledge delivery. These are challenges that are of interest to nurse educators who seek to retain command over the learning process (Smith, Carpenter & Fitzpatrick, 2015).

Another challenge that plagues e-learning is the different learner requirements in terms education materials and learning approaches. Every learning has an effective learning approach that he/she best responds to in terms of acquired concepts. The learner needs are best assessed through face-to-face interactions, and e-learning does not allow for such assessments thereby making it difficult to determine the best education delivery method for each learner (Thomas et al., 2016).

References

Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (2020). Home. Retrieved from https://www.acenursing.org/

American Association for Colleges of Nursing (2020). About AACN. Retrieved from https://www.aacnnursing.org/About-AACN

Christensen, L. & Simmons, L. (2019). The scope of practice for academic nurse educators and academic clinical nurse educators (3^rd ed.). Riverwoods, IL: Wolters Kluwer Health.

Morelock, S. (2019). Current and future educational challenges for the nurse educator. Retrieved from https://rn-journal.com/journal-of-nursing/educational-challenges-in-nurse-education

National League of Nursing (2020). About. Retrieved from http://www.nln.org/about

Organization for Associate Degree Nursing (2020). About OADN. Retrieved from https://www.oadn.org/about-us/about-oadn

Shellenbarger, T. (2019). Clinical nurse educator competencies: creating an evidence-based practice for academic clinical nurse educators. Riverwoods, IL: Wolters Kluwer Health.

Smith, M., Carpenter, R. & Fitzpatrick, J. (2015). Encyclopedia of nursing education. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company, LLC.

Thomas, P., Kern, D., Hughes, M. & Chen, B. (2016). Curriculum development for medical education: a six-step approach (3^rd ed.). Baltimore, MD: John Hopkins University Press.