Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

Sample Answer for Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

Population health faces numerous challenges, necessitating adequate nursing professionals in health care facilities and communities. Chronic diseases, mental disorders, environmental pollution, and other issues pose a significant risk to people’s health and well-being. As a result, qualified and motivated nursing professionals are needed in the evolving practice to address current and emerging patient needs. More advanced practice registered nurses are also needed to enable nurses to cope with the nursing shortage and improve patient outcomes. Nursing specialties differ in the scope of practice, certification, and regulation. The purpose of this paper is to describe the current scope of practice for my specialty and the role of the advanced registered nurse in positively influencing the health care system.

The Scope of Future Role as an Advanced Registered Nurse

After joining the school, nurses look forward to acquiring skills and competencies that qualify them to provide patient care to diverse populations. Typically, the role of an advanced registered nurse is to assess, diagnose, order tests, and prescribe medications (Wheeler et al., 2022). Advanced registered nurses perform these roles due to their additional graduate education, expert knowledge, and clinical competencies that prepare them for advanced practice. Excellence in this role requires advanced practice nurses to collaborate with other health care providers (Wheeler et al., 2022). Since the routine role revolves around direct patient care provision, collaboration is crucial for nurses to manage complex patient needs more effectively.

Nurse practitioners (NPs) comprise the largest group of advanced practice registered nurses. As a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), my future role will broadly involve assessing patients, diagnosing, treating, and prescribing medications. According to Oppenheimer (2023), FNPs have specialized graduate education to provide primary health care services to people of all ages. They mainly focus on health promotion and education, which underlines their significance in the health care system. Providing patient care to all individuals and families further highlights the importance of FNPs in bridging the gap between the current and desired health outcomes among patients and diverse populations.

Certification for nurse practitioners is crucial to ensure they have sufficient knowledge and competencies to provide high-quality patient care. Certification is the formal process of recognizing that someone has completed their journey to becoming an NP. The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB) provides a valid and reliable certification program for entry-level NPs. FNPs and adult gerontology nurse practitioners are certified by the AANPCB, which is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies (American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 2024). Although the process is rigorous, it is crucial for all NPs before joining the workforce. The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) also offers numerous certification programs for various specialties. Among them is the Family Nurse Practitioner Certification (FNP-BC) for FNPs (American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 2024). The certification validates FNPs’ expertise and knowledge to employers and patients.

Three Influential Professional Nursing Organizations

Nursing organizations are the foundation of nurses’ personal and professional development. They influence nursing differently depending on the resources, guidance, and opportunities offered to members. The American Nurses Association (ANA) is among the influential nursing organizations advancing nursing and empowering members. With over four million members from diverse nursing backgrounds, the ANA supports nurses and advances nursing care to ensure better health (Wiesen, 2024). It also advocates for the nursing profession to create a healthy environment for nurses to excel in their roles. The other influential organization is the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP). It has approximately 119,000 members teaming up to advance nurse practitioner practice and improve patient care (Faubion, 2024). Another valuable organization is the American Family Nurse Practitioner. It is dedicated to family nurse practitioners, providing an avenue for information and knowledge sharing. Besides enhancing FNP practice, the association inspires future FNPs to join the profession.

Most Appealing Professional Organization

Nurse practitioners should be committed to personal and professional growth to provide high-quality care and respond to practice issues competently. Among these associations, I would like to join the AANP due to its membership benefits and alignment with my care philosophy. Its mission is to empower all NPs to provide quality health care through practice, education, advocacy, research, and leadership (American Association of Nurse Practitioners, 2024; Faubion, 2024). The implication is that AANP empowers nurse practitioners to provide holistic care by combining skills, competencies, and perspectives from multiple sources. This aligns with my care philosophy and worldview since holistic nursing is the foundation of improved patient outcomes and can only be achieved by nurses improving their perspectives, competencies, and approaches over time.

The benefits of a nursing organization should be the primary consideration for nurses before seeking membership. Joining AANP might improve my practice through education, mentorship, information, and legislative support. Education opportunities include conferences and seminars that empower members through information on practice changes, laws, and emerging needs (Morin, 2021; Faubion, 2024). Mentorship is provided by seasoned members and is critical for guidance and support for nurses to understand and cope with complex health care challenges. Importantly, membership will allow me to connect and share ideas with like-minded professionals. These benefits are crucial in direct patient care and related aspects like advocacy, professional support, and resilience in nursing.

Controversial or Evolving Issue Most Likely to Impact Scope of Practice or Role

Nursing is a growing profession characterized by many controversial and evolving issues. This inevitable growth underlines the need for nurses to stay current and adapt as necessary. One of the evolving issues with a high potential to affect my scope of practice in the next few years is the increased adoption of technology in healthcare delivery. In agreement with Grande et al. (2020), digital technologies will continue dominating patient care as health care providers seek opportunities for improving access, cost-effectiveness, and communication. Increased technology adoption implies more use of clinical systems, including telehealth, patient portals, and electronic health records. Besides, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and wearables will continue influencing how, when, and where health care services are offered. Technology adoption is a dominant issue since increased use leads to more challenges and risks. For instance, digital devices are associated with ethical and legal risks, including data theft and privacy concerns (Grande et al., 2020). At all levels, nurse practitioners should be wary of such dangers to ensure the safe, ethical, and professional use of current and emerging technologies.

Increased technology adoption will profoundly influence the nursing profession and other stakeholders. To the nursing profession, health technologies like telehealth and artificial intelligence have the potential to improve efficiency and access to care in rural and underserved populations (Klee et al., 2023; Wubineh et al., 2023). Increased capacity for nurses to serve more patients would improve cost-effectiveness and patient satisfaction. Technology use is also positively linked to medical error reduction, which saves costs and prevents adverse outcomes like increased hospitalizations and readmissions. Stakeholders affected by technology use include organizational leaders, partners, and policymakers. They should collaborate to ensure that health care facilities have adequate and effective infrastructure and policies to support safe, tech-driven patient care.

Increased use and relevance of technology should matter to advanced registered nurses due to their central role in primary care. In routine practice, the advanced registered nurse should explore opportunities for improving patient outcomes. Digital technologies enable nurses to provide better patient care and improve communication (Awad et al., 2021). Therefore, nurses are obliged to identify practice gaps that can be addressed through the adoption of technology. Besides, practice changes require nurses to adapt and advance changes for high-quality patient care and a better work environment. Since technology affects all these aspects, the advanced practice nurse should be concerned and guide health care facilities in adopting and sustaining supportive technologies.

Conclusion

Health care delivery continues to advance in many aspects, including approaches, tools, and patient-provider relationships. Excellence in nursing requires nursing professionals to understand the scope of practice and improve their skills as situations necessitate. Nurse practitioners should also join a professional nursing organization for personal and professional growth. Above all, awareness of evolving issues and appropriate responses are vital for nurses in the advancing profession. A suitable example of such issues is the increased adoption of technology, which increases opportunities for improved health care access and cost-effectiveness. However, nurses should be wary of the privacy and security concerns associated with technology use to provide care within the established professional and ethical guidelines.

References for Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

American Association of Nurse Practitioners. (2024). About the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP). https://www.aanp.org/about/about-the-american-association-of-nurse-practitioners-aanp

American Association of Nurse Practitioners. (2024). Nurse practitioner (NP) certification. https://www.aanp.org/student-resources-old/np-certification

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Faubion, D. (2024). Top professional nurse practitioner organizations and associations. NursingProcess.Org. https://www.nursingprocess.org/nurse-practitioner-organizations-associations.html

Grande, D., Luna Marti, X., Feuerstein-Simon, R., Merchant, R. M., Asch, D. A., Lewson, A., & Cannuscio, C. C. (2020). Health policy and privacy challenges associated with digital technology. JAMA Network Open, 3(7), e208285. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.828

Klee, D., Pyne, D., Kroll, J., James, W., & Hirko, K. A. (2023). Rural patient and provider perceptions of telehealth implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 981. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-023-09994-4

Morin, K. H. (2021). Editorial: Contributions of professional nursing organizations. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 77(6), e1-e3. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.14808

Wheeler, K. J., Miller, M., Pulcini, J., Gray, D., Ladd, E., & Rayens, M. K. (2022). Advanced practice nursing roles, regulation, education, and practice: a global study. Annals of Global Health, 88(1), 42. https://doi.org/10.5334/aogh.3698

Wiesen, K. (2024). 8 Top family nurse practitioner professional organizations and associations. NursingProcess.Org. https://www.nursingprocess.org/family-nurse-practitioner-organizations.html

Wubineh, B. Z., Deriba, F. G., & Woldeyohannis, M. M. (2023). Exploring the opportunities and challenges of implementing artificial intelligence in healthcare: a systematic literature review. In Urologic Oncology: Seminars and Original Investigations. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.urolonc.2023.11.019