Health Care and Nursing

Health Care and Nursing

A registered nurse has a couple of options in the market. One of the essential places one can work is in hospitals. However, a registered nurse can also work in a physician’s office, correctional facilities, long-term care facilities, schools, or in a military facility. A registered nurse is expected to enlighten patients about illnesses and injuries. They also teach the patients about proper care and management after one is discharged from the hospital or facility. They have to educate the masses on taking care of their families and friends. A registered nurse is expected to work closely with the patients in whichever of the above facilities they are in (Pittman, Bass, Hargraves, Herrera, & Thompson, 2015).

The Institute of Medicine (IOM) issued a report on the future of nursing in November of 2010 in which they said that nurses are supposed to advance to higher levels of education. This should be done through the education system, which enhances seamless academic development. The IOM holds that nurses need to advance to higher levels of learning so that they can be able to fit in the changing healthcare system. The IOM also provided some recommendation which would enhance the transformation of the nursing education. One of the recommendations is to motivate nurses who have a diploma or associate degrees to enroll in baccalaureate nursing degrees by reducing tuition, giving promotions, and salary increments and campaigning for a culture that encourages continuing education (Pittman, Bass, Hargraves, Herrera, & Thompson, 2015). They also recommend that the students’ loans and grants be expanded for nursing students at all levels.

I would wish to pursue a DNP since, from the statistics, the Doctor of Nursing Practice programs has proven to produce exemplary nurses who have adequate skills to manage each patient and improve the patient outcome by transferring the knowledge learned in research into practice (Cruz, Cabrera, Hufana, Alquwez, & Almazan, 2018). I want to be an exceptional nurse who will be able to deliver and give back to society. In addition to the skills that the DNP acquires, they usually earn a higher salary, and they are also entitled to many more opportunities of advancement with the assurance that academic achievements and specialized expertise go hand in hand with better pay. A higher salary is on its motivation for one to pursue a given program.

After I am successfully registered as a nurse after completing my course at the college, I will enroll for a bachelor’s degree in nursing. This will take approximately four years as I will be studying for four years. I will then pursue a master’s degree in nursing for entry-level for around two years, where I will qualify to apply for a DNP program. A full DNP program is most likely to take four years as I will be studying full time. Within the four years, I will have acquired various skills which will come in handy in the job market. To achieve my goal, I will have to study for around ten years, which is enough to learn all the required skills.

By advancing to higher levels of nursing, I would be improving my competency as a nurse in many ways. I would achieve excellent leadership skills, health policy, evidence-based practice, system thinking and teamwork, and collaboration, among others. I will also be able to work effectively and per the changing health system when I keep on advancing my studies throughout my career life. I will be able to achieve what is expected of every nurse that will satisfy the needs of the patients, become a leader as well as advances in science.

The American Nursing Association (ANA) is an association that provides what is expected from a nurse in terms of critical thinking and professional behavior. A nurse is believed to be competent once he is licensed, although, with the changing health care systems, this seems to be insufficient currently. Continuing nursing education aims at enhancing the professional practice of nursing, which in turn ensures that proper care is provided to the patients (Cruz, Cabrera, Hufana, Alquwez, & Almazan, 2018). Continuing nursing education equips a nurse with knowledge on technology use, updates with new trends, and this will improve patients’ outcome and their changing needs as well as curbing medication errors. It also promotes teamwork, collaboration, and networking, which will aid in widening the employment gaps for the nurses (Fey, & Louise, 2015). The ANA explains certification as an achievement of exceptional nursing knowledge, which is supported through continuing nursing education.

Continuing nursing education should be mandatory to every nurse due to the competencies, which are currently needed in the practice of nursing. With this era of technology advancement, continuing nursing education comes in handy as health care systems keep changing, and one needs to move with the trend to ensure they remain relevant in the field. As well known, nursing is a continual lifelong learning process. Continuing nursing education does not online keep one in check with the changing trends but also offers nurses the opportunity to get in touch with various areas in nursing (Fey, & Louise, 2015).

References

Pittman, P., Bass, E., Hargraves, J., Herrera, C., & Thompson, P. (2015). The future of nursing: monitoring the progress of recommended change in hospitals, nurse-led clinics, and home health and hospice agencies. JONA: The Journal of Nursing Administration, 45(2), 93-99.

Fey, Mary K., and Louise S. Jenkins. “Debriefing practices in nursing education programs: Results from a national study.” Nursing Education Perspectives 36.6 (2015): 361-366.

Cruz, J. P., Cabrera, D. N. C., Hufana, O. D., Alquwez, N., & Almazan, J. (2018). Optimism, proactive coping, and quality of life among nurses: A cross‐sectional study. Journal of clinical nursing, 27(9-10), 2098-2108.

Institute of Medicine. (2010). The Future of Nursing: Leading change, advancing health.

American Nurses Association (2015). Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements. Silver Spring.