Professional Nursing Development Plan - Assignment Example

 Professional Development Plan Introduction Each and every learning program helps learners in gaining knowledge and skills on how they can improve their profession as well as ensure that their practices are in line with the standard requirements of the of the area of focus. In particular, this reflection focuses on the RN-BSN Program and explores how the experience enables one become a fully trained nurse who understands his or her role to the organization as well as the society in general. Therefore, the plan has reflected on a professional development outcomes from the course as it explores various learning experiences especially on leadership role in nursing, community health education, professional roles and behaviors in nursing among other areas of focus that are important in the professional development of nurses. Assume leadership roles on multidisciplinary teams within health care organizations. From this area of focus, a student learns an important area in leadership and development as it explores some of the roles of leadership within the multidisciplinary teams in health care organizations. As a person aspiring to assume a nursing leadership role in future, one learns that teamwork has undoubtedly become an important area of focus for the modern health care sector; it has gained enormous popularity (Arroliga, Huber, Myers, Dieckert and Wesson, 2014). Teamwork is essential in nursing profession because functioning as unit implies that everyone in the healthcare organization will act as a team, and the positive effects are felt on the increased efficient of the job. A leader also learns that team working is crucial in enhancing patients’ experience. Enhance professional nursing practice through the use of research and evidence-based practice. In this area of study, I am introduced to the impact that evidence-based practice has on the nursing profession and practice. From this topic, I have learned that evidence-based practice contributes a great deal to healthcare transformation and necessary for redesigning efficient, safe and efficient healthcare (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). From this area of focus, a student learns that clinical knowledge, basic science knowledge, research findings are the ‘‘evidence’’ while practice-based research results are more likely to produce the most desired patient experience (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). Evidence-based practice improves the healthcare sector through greater availability of information, a higher level of patient experience and satisfaction, cost containment and quality health care. The course also teaches students that evidence-based practice brings out the opportunities making nursing care more effective, individualized, dynamic and streamlined. Therefore, the program concludes that evidence defines the best practices and ensures that the nursing cares is updated on the latest innovations in technology besides taking the advantage of the available knowledge development opportunities. Integrate methods of research and scholarship to make and prioritize diagnoses. The course also provides opportunities for using nursing research in prioritizing diagnoses. In particular, the course recommends that diagnoses should be based on the knowledge, methods and procedures acquired through the nursing evidence-based practice (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). To be precise, the course introduces students to nursing research by assigning as the assigns each student research assignments. In return, students use the knowledge from the research to diagnose cases. In this case, the learning program stresses the need for the nursing professionals to keep up to date with the current evidence-based practice as the knowledge in diagnosing nursing cases and as such improves quality and accuracy of diagnoses. This area of focus also entailed referring to evidence-based practice from multiple disciplines including humanities, sciences and research for guiding the nursing practices when addressing various health illnesses in different health care settings (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2011). Design care for individuals, groups, and communities. An outstanding contribution that the course has made in my nursing profession is that it has led me to approach my nursing care practice beyond personal context but beyond individuals, community and the society in general. Designing care for the groups, communities, individuals requires a nurse to work with the community as this provides the opportunity to educate them about how to improve their health and safety, as well as ensuring there is improved accessibility to the public health nurses (Vandebroek, 2013). Some of the care services that this area of focus refers to are programs aimed at monitoring health trends, identifying factors that increase the health risks of specific communities. Designing care for the community also entails setting priorities of the health interventions approaches rather to focus on providing greatest health care benefits to all people. Advocate with local, state and federal authorities to improve access to health services for underserved communities One of the issues in health care is the limited access of services to the underserved communities. The underserved communities are disadvantaged regarding healthcare facilities, allocation and availability of health care professionals as well as limited health education. As such, the course recommends how nursing organizations have joined hands to advocate improved accessibility of health services to the unprivileged communities (Vandebroek, 2013). In fact, nursing leaders have been keeping the State, local, and federal authorities in check as they have been urging the authorities to allocate more finances to increase health care facilities in these underserved areas. In this field of focus, students learn the need to increase the accessibility of healthcare services stems from the fact that the underserved regions have recorded high mortality rates from health cases that could have been prevented. Design and implement health education campaigns and disease prevention activities, such as immunizations and screenings The course stresses that health care can be improved when the stakeholders engage in educational campaigns aimed at enlightening them about the available disease prevention activities like health screenings and immunization. Though the course, students learn the importance of health screening as a preventive approach towards health care management by identifying and anticipating the health problems in time because they become pandemic (Vandebroek, 2013). In particular, the program explores how immunization is necessary to protect the children from deadly diseases that are otherwise preventable through vaccination. The program also encourages the healthcare professionals implementing the programs to educate the community about the negative attitudes and myths associated with health intervention approaches like immunization. Educate and provide direct health care services to vulnerable and at-risk populations Community healthcare also focuses on educating as well as providing healthcare to particularly vulnerable communities and the populations who are at risks of serious health promises. For instance, the course introduces students to health care provision and monitoring of the special cases like patients with diabetes, stroke and other cardiovascular health related diseases (Vandebroek, 2013). To a more detailed exploration, a nursing professional learns through the course that vulnerable populations require direct approaches to health provision whereby the healthcare providers focus on reaching out directly to these populations. Incorporate methods of health promotion and education in nursing care of individuals, families and groups with simple to complex health care needs. Health education entails such issues like enlightening the community about the importance of exercising, educating the populations against the dangers of unhealthy behaviors like smoking, encouraging individuals to moderate their rate of alcohol consumption and as such, provide alternatives on how they can control the existing diseases (Vandebroek, 2013). Through this course, a student learns that the best approach to promoting healthcare education is by working closely with the community healthcare since they have the firsthand knowledge about the pressing issues in the society and can help in evaluating the effectiveness of health promotion and education methods. Accept accountability and responsibility for professional judgment and actions. From this course, students learn the importance of accountability in actions and judgments within the nursing profession. From this program, a nursing professional learns that he or she must be accountable in his actions, and this mainly focuses on leaders whom the staffs look upon to make rational judgments and as such, show responsibility in addressing the needs of both the organization and the plight of the nurses (Akhtar-Danesh, Baumann, Kolotylo, Lawlor, Tompkins & Lee, 2013). Responsibility also entails nurses having the right attitude towards doing tasks beyond their areas of scope as this collaboration is needed in making the health care organization environment a place where collective responsibility is valued. Integrate professional values and role behaviors. Much of the success of any nursing practitioner stems from his or her ability to uphold the professional values and role behaviors when performing duties. For instance, the course introduces students to some of the professional values and focuses on morals values when dealing with patients, working with the families and relating with any stakeholder in the health care sector (Akhtar-Danesh, Baumann, Kolotylo, Lawlor, Tompkins & Lee, 2013). A primary focus of this area of study is the issue of professionalism in nursing; that individual nurses must exhibit these values when making decisions. Knowledge of this area introduces students to nursing professionalism and recommends behaviors of nurses at the workplace must be acceptable according to the nursing profession. Examine the problems of contemporary health and illness. Nonetheless, by learning this course, a student gets the chance to identify and examine into details some of the problems of the current health and illness. One of the challenges is that many people worldwide are still not able to access health care services. The area of focus also shows how cardiovascular diseases are the number one killer disease pandemic in the contemporary world while there are also potential threats from malnutrition, infectious diseases, and high mortality rates from HIV/AIDS (Vandebroek, 2013). This area also focuses on how health care marginalization is still a challenge in ensuring that there is equality in healthcare provision evident from the presence of underserved communities since they have limited accessibility to healthcare facilities. Demonstrate the role of the global citizen. The contemporary word is quite dynamic because the ease of communication, transport, travel that enables people to transcend every boundary and reach out a variety of socio-cultural setting. From this area of focus, a student first learns what it means to be a global citizen as an individual who recognizes to be part of the emerging world community. A global citizen, therefore, contributes to the building of the global community through actions and behaviors (Edwards & Gaventa, 2014). The world is becoming a community and the knowledge from this course enables learners to understand the importance of identifying with the world community and that they have to contribute to the well-being of the community through actions and behaviors. The course provides opportunities for demonstrating global citizenship as it recommends that such individuals must try as much as possible to understand other people. Besides, a global citizen must act with fairness when making decisions, uttering words and making choices. On the other hand, a global citizen believes in equality for everyone and does not hold members of particular community, nation, gender with biased regards (Edwards & Gaventa, 2014). To demonstrate global citizenship, one must believe in equal rights and their actions must show justness. Most importantly, a student learns from this course that a global citizen must accept differences mainly cultural diversity regarding political ideology, religion affiliation, race, gender, and ethnicity. Collaborate with other groups to shape health policies that affect both individual and community health For the healthcare organization to prosper, there must with an equal representation of people with vested interests in shaping the policies that safeguard health care provision to individual patients and the entire community (Vandebroek, 2013). Every stakeholder in the health care sector must be included in the important decision-making processes implying that policy formulation is a collaborative task. As such, this area of focus identifies the stakeholders in the healthcare sector including doctors, nurses, patients, the community health providers, the government. The collaboration of these interested parties in the healthcare management ensures effective policy formulation because the interests of every stakeholder group will have been presented. Conclusion In summary, the reflection gives a special attention on how the RN-BSN Program introduces students to current issues like being global citizens, the current health and illness issues in the contemporary world as well as the approaches and the methods of education and promotion of health care services to the underserved communities. It also explores how the learning experiences enriches a nurse’s professionalism behaviors and roles, introducing students to community-based health care and the need to advocate for the increased accessibility of the healthcare services to the underserved communities to reduce the mortality rates recorded from the poor accessibility to healthcare. References Akhtar-Danesh, N., Baumann, A., Kolotylo, C., Lawlor, Y., Tompkins, C., & Lee, R. (2013). Perceptions of professionalism among nursing faculty and nursing students. Western journal of nursing research, 35(2), 248-271. Arroliga, A. C., Huber, C., Myers, J. D., Dieckert, J. P., & Wesson, D. (2014). Leadership in Health Care for the 21 st Century: Challenges and Opportunities. The American journal of medicine, 127(3), 246-249. Edwards, M., & Gaventa, J. (2014). Global citizen action. Routledge. Melnyk, B. M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (Eds.). (2011). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Vandebroek, I. (2013). Intercultural health and ethnobotany: How to improve healthcare for underserved and minority communities?. Journal of ethnopharmacology, 148(3), 746-754. Read More