The Need for Master's Prepared Nurses in Pediatrics - Essay Example

Similarly, pediatrics, a nursing field, requires developments in its personnel in order to ensure better services and management of the profession. This paper seeks to discuss the need for Master’s prepared nurses in pediatrics. The paper will explore some of the associated benefits that a nurse is likely to derive from attaining a Master’s program. The need for Master’s prepared nurses in pediatrics Developments in the nursing profession’s environment that has witnessed stringent regulations in monitoring the scope of nursing represent one of the factors that call for the need for Master’s prepared nurses.

While nurses were previously certified to practice with basic qualifications such as that of a ‘post registered nurse’, regulating bodies have raised standards and only a nurse with a Master’s degree meets a basic requirement for an “advanced nursing practice” (Schober and Affara, 2006, p. 114). At the same time, there has been increasing debate for raising minimum requirements for nurses that want to remain in advanced practice. This has led to plans for formulating doctorate programs in the profession.

This trend, therefore, means that the nursing profession in general and pediatrics as a branch of nursing needs higher qualifications. A pediatric nurse with a basic qualification, such as post registered nurses and those with bachelor’s qualifications, may be rendered redundant. An ambitious pediatric nurse with a vision and objective to remain active in the scope of practice to the benefit of the society will, therefore, seek at least a Master’s program before considering further advancements (Schober and Affara, 2006).

A Master’s prepared nurse is also necessary for the pediatric field because of the higher potential of influence that a Master’s program has on graduates. One of the benefits of Master’s programs in nursing is the leadership skills that attendants acquire. This means that with Master’s prepared nurses in pediatrics, the field will be managed by insiders who are more informed of the operations and the needs in the scope of pediatrics. A better management will, therefore, be achieved as compared to those by people with qualifications in business or other fields.

Similarly, a Master’s program equips graduates with research skills, a scope that has develop to be critical in evidence based practice. With basic nursing qualifications that lack research skills, evidence based practice would require outsourced skills from other professions such as statistics. This implies extra operational cost that would be minimized if pediatrics were Master’s trained to have research skills. Similarly, a Master’s trained nurse in pediatrics will be able to operate with varying political and social climates either as an individual or as a leader because the Master’s programs equip nurses with knowledge and skills to manage influences and pressure from such sources (Nursing, 2007).

The Marquette University, through the scope of its nursing program, also supports the need for Master’s trained nurses in pediatrics. In addition to the capacity to carry out research, a Master’s trained pediatric nurse is able to “apply pertinent theories and evidence from research” to improve the quality of services offered to patients. Similarly, the trained pediatric nurse is equipped with high level of ethical and communication skill that are important in