Role Development for the Nurse with Advanced Education in Nursing
Today, advanced practice nurses specialize in a number of fields, including midwifery, anesthetist, and family nurse practitioner. Moreover, these health care professionals earn far more than the national average are they are in consistently high demand across the country. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role development of a family nurse practitioner with advanced nursing education. To this end, the paper reviews the literature related to the historical, educational, and professional development of family nurse practitioners as well as an examination concerning the current practice environment and related legal and professional considerations. In addition, the results of a telephonic interview with a family nurse practitioner are followed by a critique of the personal skills and characteristics within the context of family nurse practitioners. Finally, an educational and professional practice plan for a family nurse practitioner are followed by a summary of the research and important findings about this advanced practice nursing role in the papers conclusion.
Review and Discussion
General role information
One of the defining characteristics of the family nurse practitioner role is its growing ubiquity. Indeed, more than two-thirds of the advanced practice nurses in the United States today hold family nurse practitioner credentials. For instance, according to nursing educators at Carson-Newman University, Family nurse practitioners (FNP) earn high salaries working in a variety of settings [and] the occupation is among the most popular specialized nursing roles with about 67% of nurse practitioners across the nation [holding] the FNP credential (Family nurse practitioner overview, 2020, para. 3).
The historical development of the nurse practitioner role dates back a half century when, in 1965, an expansion of the Medicaid and Medicare programs to disabled people and the elderly as well as women and children by the U.S. government resulted in heavy demand for health care services that existing resources were unable to meet. In response, nurse practitioner programs were introduced across the country in order to address this growing demand, especially in rural areas of the country (Family nurse practitioner overview, 2020).
The current regulations for education, certification, credentialing, and competencies for advanced practice nurses vary by jurisdiction, but the provisions of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 authorized nurse practitioners to receive direct reimbursement and the profession was legally allowed in all 50 states. Today, obtaining an advanced nursing practice degree generally require a masters degree and a certain amount of clinical experience. In general, advanced practice nurses must provide the following information and documents to receive credentialing and privileging from a health care provider:
A curriculum vitae or resume that specifies the applicants education, work experience, license(s), board certification(s), special certification(s),...
These are used in part to indicate the necessary education and
training to function in a particular role (Some agencies may also require a letter or skills checklist from the applicants program director indicating which specific skills were obtained during the course of studies. Certain agencies may want to examine case reports,
history and physicals, acute care notes, and other supporting materials as evidence of competency in a specific role.) Any clinical logs kept during the applicants studies will also help to establish areas of competency.
Completion of a delineation form that indicates which activities the applicant feels he or she is competent to provide. This assists the agencys credentialing/executive committee to determine which privileges should be granted (McMullen & Howie, 2020, p. 93).
Some of the professional organizations that support the role of advanced practice nurse include the American Nurses Association (ANA) which...
…practice nursing peers that have adversely affected their morale and
productivity.
Personal development
An appropriate theoretical model that can help guide Lindsey future personal development is the aptly named career development theory (Nevill, 1997). The career development theory provides additional perspectives from which to improve and elaborate on the way practitioners and researchers comprehend and intervene in occupational choice and career development (Savickas, 1997, p. 248). Some of the personal characteristics and traits that make me an appropriate candidate for the family nurse practitioner role include empathy, compassion, caring and a strong sense of self-efficacy.
At present, however, there are some learning needs that must be addressed to continue my lifelong pursuit of higher education, including improved cross-cultural competencies and interpersonal communication skills. Four corresponding development goals that will facilitate my progress towards assuming the role of family nurse practitioner are as follows:
1. Pursue additional learning concerning common cross-cultural differences and how these affect the treatment process;
2. Attend seminars and workshops concerning developing effective interpersonal communication skills,
3. Complete my masters degree nursing program; and,
4. Develop and complete a practicum that draws on my abilities, education and training as an advanced practice nurse specializing in family medicine.
Conclusion
The research showed that advanced practice nursing is legal in all 50 states and increasing numbers of jurisdictions are authorizing these health care professionals to diagnose, prescribe certain classes of medications and otherwise treat patients for a wide range of disorders. The research also showed that a majority of advanced practice nurses specialize in family medicine and this percentage will likely continue to increase for the foreseeable future as the nations health care network is stretched to its limits. In the final analysis, it is reasonable to conclude that the path to becoming an advanced practice nurse is a demanding and challenging enterprise but the professional rewards are worth…
