NR 500 Week 4: APN Professional Development Plan Paper

NR 500 Week 4: Nurse Practitioner Professional Development Plan

NR 500 Week 4: APN Professional Development Plan Paper

Advanced Practice Nurse Scope of Practice

Nurse Practitioner Professional Development Plan

Advanced Practice Nurse Scope of Practice

The scope of practice of nurse practitioners is dependent on the state in which one applies for licensure. The scope of practice can be classified as full practice, reduced scope, and restricted scope practice. Currently across the US, most states have either restricted or reduced the scope of practice for nurse practitioners. Only 21 of the states offer nurse practitioners a full scope of practice. In Illinois, nurse practitioners are licensed to practice independently or in collaboration, or under other health care providers.

Educational Requirements

A prospective Advanced Practice Nurse must be a holder of RN licensure. He or she must be a graduate degree or a post-master certificate holder. The other prerequisite is that he or she must hold a certificate in advanced practice in any of the four advanced practice roles certified in Illinois (Illinois APN Requirements | Become a Nurse Practitioner in IL – NursingLicensure.org, 2020). Subspecialty advanced practice nursing is also acceptable when one desires to complete a second degree.

License Requirements

Illinois still practices examination-based certification before licensure. Certification is the sole purpose of corresponding bodies such as the midwives association, and anesthetists association. Nurse Practitioners hold certification from boards like the  American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Program and the  American Nurses Credentialing Center among others. Licensure is done by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) and the Illinois Board of Nursing. The official graduation transcripts are a requirement before licensure. The licensing application costs  $125 (Illinois APN Requirements | Become a Nurse Practitioner in IL – NursingLicensure.org, 2020). License renewal is done on a two-yearly basis so long as the APRN maintains certification.

Regulatory Requirements

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) regulates the practice of nurse practitioners. For license renewal, the NP must have completed 80 hours of continuing medical education.  License renewal is two years and costs $80.00 (Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, 2020). For re-licensure, the certifications of advanced practice must be maintained.

Practice Authority

Illinois has a restrictive law on the practice authority of nurse practitioners. Initially, Nurse Practitioners have to work under physician oversight. Licensing for practice authority requires a nurse practitioner to provide evidence of completion of at least 250 hours of training or continuous medical education or proof that they have at least 4000 hours of experience in the clinical setup (APRNs Granted “Full Practice Authority” in Illinois, 2020). An APRN license is also needed. These are the prerequisites for full practice authority.

Prescriptive Authority

Prescriptive authority is a jurisdiction that provides a healthcare provider with the sovereignty to prescribe medication to patients. The prescriptive independence of nurses has long remained a contentious issue and due to variations of this law in different states in the US, it remains complicated (Jiao et al., 2018). The legal aspects of prescriptive autonomy in Illinois are managed by the Illinois Department of Professional regulation. In the state of Illinois, Nurse practitioners lack complete independence hence they must be oversight by a physician. The laws require Nurse Practitioners to have a mid-level practitioner controlled substance license to have some prescriptive independence for controlled substances which is obtained by supplying a notice filled by a physician (Illinois General Assembly – Full Text of Public Act 096-0189, 2020). Generally, NPs can prescribe under a physician’s instruction. Retaining the licensure on prescription requires a regular renewal of the license and a good reputation. These hurdles in prescriptive authority are meant for ultimate patient safety and high-quality care.

Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies

The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) enlists a set of 10 domains of competencies for Nurse Practitioners. Each domain depicts a set of skills that a nurse practitioner needs to have. These competencies are aligned with the AACN essentials. These competencies are useful in the development of curricula for postgraduate studies. They include competencies in the domain of knowledge for nursing practice, patient-centered care, population health, scholarships for nursing disciplines, quality and safe care, partnerships across different professions, systems-based practice, professionalism, informatics, and health care technology application, and personal and leadership development (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2021).

Personally Strong competency Areas

After a detailed review of the ten competencies of a nurse practitioner, I can confidently mention that interprofessional partnerships are the real deal for me. Generally, I am a very outgoing person.  As early as high school, I have had a great interest in statistics, finding out why things occur in some pattern, and remedies that can be put in place to alleviate suffering. This has over time pulled me into research. Through research, I partner with organizations and individuals in a quest to make life bearable. I collaborate with physicians, pharmacists, and laboratory technologists among others to actualize studies that have been useful in the formulation of policies that guide practice. My second competency is in individualized patient-centered care. I am a strong advocate for both evidenced based practice and culturally competent care. My love for humanity knows no bounds. This puts me at a vantage point to ensure patient satisfaction in the process of provision of care. I am a fierce patient advocate. I have been that fierce since I began my practice. According to Karaca & Durna, (2019) patient satisfaction improves the outcome and reduces readmission rates. At my former workplace, I introduced a survey for patients’ level of satisfaction with the care provided. This helped us improve our areas of weakness as an organization.

Competency Areas Where There is Room for Growth

I have also noted two areas in which I should improve my competencies. The first domain is Informatics and Healthcare Technologies. For a long time, I have viewed the Information Technology aspect of healthcare as a very hard concept. Healthcare is for sure revolutionizing health care and I risk being left behind. Aspects like mHealth, telemedicine, and electronic health records are important new developments. I feel like this domain has such a high level of essentiality even for my endeavors in research studies. Electronic health records allow for timely access to data for studies (De Benedictis et al., 2020). The second area where there is room for growth is leadership. I have an immense loathing for the process of politics. This notion has for a long time made me view leadership as a secondary issue in my life. I have learned that through leadership, policies are influenced. These policies could be great ideas to improve the quality and safety of care. I have it in my plan to join the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) to help me nurture my skills in this domain of leadership. My expansive interactions with individuals in the nursing profession and beyond the profession have helped me view myself as a great organizer which is one of the strengths required in leadership.

Scholarly Activities to Help Achieve NP Competencies

I would want to continue improving on my weakness and soaring on my strengths. I am a member of the American Nurses Association.  It is in my plans to join the American Association of Nurse practitioners. I have participated in research studies, and done an article in collaboration with my friends which is yet to be published. This is certainly a good foundation that I would like to build on. With my interest leaning more toward research, I have planned to join a few nurse professional organizations which focus on research. Joining these organizations brings me closer to like-minded professionals who can help me grow my leadership skills. I have made steps towards embracing the informatics aspect of health. I have planned to pursue a short course in health informatics soon. I have a mentor that inspires me to pursue my plans. I would someday like to be an inspiration to people. This thought keeps me alive and has helped me accomplish my plans.

Leadership Skills

Leadership Skills Required to Lead in Complex Systems

Nurse Practitioner is a high cadre in nursing. This makes an NP to be looked up to for guidance on a myriad of issues from time to time. This calls for a nurse practitioner to be equipped with leadership skills. Communication is the first skill and one of the most important skills me. Proper communication is a critical skill in ensuring the success of a unit. It allows the leader to exercise empathy with both patients and nurses. Communication is a major factor in job satisfaction for nurses (Jankelová & Joniaková, 2021). Other skills include critical thinking which is essential in problem-solving. Lastly, organizational management skill is crucial to both the success of the hospital organization and patient satisfaction.

Strategies to Help Develop NP Leadership Skills

Learning is the first step to developing leadership skills. Learning can be done from the observation of role models. Learning can also be actualized by taking a course on leadership. Perfection of skills is through practice in day-to-day interactions (Johnson et al., 2020). Situational awareness and discernment are often successful strategies in the development of skills.

Conclusion

As the nursing profession advances, there is a need to have more subspecialties in nursing. This calls for professional development and educational advancement. Just like all health professionals, licensing and certification are important. This serves as a safeguard for safety and quality in patient care. The knowledge of competencies and weaknesses will help shape me into the professional that I would want to be. I will capitalize on the insights I have gained thus far to help me design a clear path in career development

NR 500 Week 4: APN Professional Development Plan Paper References

American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2021). The essentials: Core competencies for professional nursing education. https://www.aacnnursing.org/Portals/42/AcademicNursing/pdf/Essentials-2021.pdf

APRNs Granted “Full Practice Authority” In Illinois. (2020, November 24). Www.mbhealthlaw.com. https://www.mbhealthlaw.com/aprns-granted-full-practice-authority-in-illinois#:~:text=In%20order%20for%20an%20APRN

De Benedictis, A., Lettieri, E., Gastaldi, L., Masella, C., Urgu, A., & Tartaglini, D. (2020). Electronic Medical Records implementation in hospital: An empirical investigation of individual and organizational determinants. Plos One, 15(6), e0234108. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0234108

Illinois APN Requirements | Become a Nurse Practitioner in IL – NursingLicensure.org. (2020, November 4). https://www.nursinglicensure.org/np-state/illinois-nurse-practitioner/

Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, (2020). https://nursing.illinois.gov/PDF/2020-02_IL_APRN_CE_Relicensure_FAQ.pdf

Illinois General Assembly – Full Text of Public Act 096-0189. (2020). Www.ilga.gov. Retrieved November 6, 2022, from https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/fulltext.asp?Name=096-0189&print=true&write=

Jankelová, N., & Joniaková, Z. (2021). Communication Skills and Transformational Leadership Style of First-Line Nurse Managers in Relation to Job Satisfaction of Nurses and Moderators of This Relationship. Healthcare, 9(3), 346. NCBI. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9030346

Jiao, S., Murimi, I. B., Stafford, R. S., Mojtabai, R., & Alexander, G. C. (2018). Quality of Prescribing by Physicians, Nurse Practitioners, and Physician Assistants in the United States. Pharmacotherapy: The Journal of Human Pharmacology and Drug Therapy, 38(4), 417–427. https://doi.org/10.1002/phar.2095

Johnson, O., Begg, K., Kelly, A. H., & Sevdalis, N. (2020). Interventions to strengthen the leadership capabilities of health professionals in Sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review. Health Policy and Planning, 36(1), 117–133. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czaa078

Karaca, A., & Durna, Z. (2019). Patient satisfaction with the quality of nursing care. Nursing Open, 6(2), 535–545. https://doi.org/10.1002/nop2.237

Mlambo, M., Silén, C., & McGrath, C. (2021). Lifelong learning and nurses’ continuing professional development, a meta-synthesis of the literature. BMC Nursing, 20(62), 1–13. https://bmcnurs.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12912-021-00579-2

Educational Requirements

I intend to practice as an APN in the state of Florida. The Florida Board of Nursing credentials APNs. Advanced practice nurses have specific educational requirements for them to practice in Florida. First, the nurses must have completed a master’s or post-master program in advanced nursing practice. The nurse should also be certified by a recognized specialty board. There is also the mandatory requirement that one must have a bachelor’s degree in nursing from an accredited institution (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2022). The duration of bachelor’s training should be four years.

License Requirements

Advanced practice nurses should apply for licensure before practicing in their diverse specialties. They apply their licensure to the Department of Health for them to take the licensure examinations. Applicants are expected to pay a fee that does not exceed $150. The applicants must meet requirements for licensure besides the educational requirements that include being of good mental and physical health, being able to communicate in English, and completing the exam within six months of graduation. Florida also offers licensure by endorsement for nurses that meet the requirements set by the board. The nurse should be certified by a specialty board and has competencies that align with those of the advanced practice registered nursing set by the board (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2022).

Regulatory Requirements

The state Nursing Practice Act sets the regulations for advanced practice nurses in Florida. The board regulates various aspects of advanced practice nursing that include licensure requirements, the scope of practice, prescriptive authority, collaboration or supervision requirements, reimbursement under Medicaid, standards of practice, and educational requirements (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2022).

Practice Authority

Advanced practice nurses in Florida have independent practice authority. They have the authority to practice without physician oversight. They have the authority to provide care within their areas of specialization and educational level. The requirement for advanced practice nurses to practice independently is that they must accumulate at least 3000 hours of experience under physician supervision. The APN should also complete a graduate-level course in pharmacology and differential diagnosis (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2022).

Prescriptive Authority

Advanced practice nurses in Florida may prescribe or dispense controlled substances defined in section 893.03 if they have graduated from a doctoral or master’s degree program in clinical nursing specialty from a recognized institution. The prescribed substances include those listed in Schedule IV, III, and II. Psychiatric nurse specialists are licensed to prescribe controlled substances listed in HB 977 of Florida Statutes. They may also initiate, monitor, and revise treatments for uncomplicated acute illnesses (Toney-Butler & Martin, 2022).

Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies

Competency Areas That are Personally Strong

            One of my areas of strength in the nurse practitioner core competencies is scientific foundation

competencies. I believe that I have adequate competencies in the use of scientific concepts in nursing practice. I can critically analyze evidence and data to inform my advanced practice nursing roles. I undertake critical analysis of evidence to determine the credibility and safety of recommended practices in nursing. I also have adept knowledge and skills in the translation of knowledge from other disciplines such as humanities into nursing science. The incorporation is important to ensure holism in nursing practice. I am also competent in the translation of research findings into nursing practice (Chan et al., 2020). Therefore, I can lead interprofessional roles that aim at using evidence in advanced practice nursing.

My other competency that I consider an area of strength is quality competencies. I believe that quality is an essential component in advanced nursing practice. I have developed adept knowledge and skills in utilizing the best available evidence to improve quality in clinical practice. I can confidently utilize best practice recommendations to improve patient care outcomes. I can also use project or strategy variables to determine the relationship between safety, quality, cost, and access and their effect on healthcare experiences and outcomes of the diverse populations (Board, 2018). I can also influence organizational cultures by instilling practices that contribute to continuous quality improvement.

Competency Areas Where There is Room for Growth

One of the competencies that I believe that I need to develop is leadership competencies. Advanced practice nurses should have adequate leadership skills in their practice. However, I feel that I still need to develop some areas of my leadership competencies. One of the areas is leading multidisciplinary teams in providing complex care to patients. I have not had adequate opportunities to develop my abilities in leading multidisciplinary teams involved in the patient care process (Chan et al., 2020). I also have to improve my leadership abilities in advocating patients’ improved access to high quality, efficient, and safe care.

The other competency for growth is policy competencies. I have had minimal opportunities to participate in policy initiatives that influence nursing practice. As a result, I believe that my knowledge and skills in contributing to policy development in healthcare are inadequate. My knowledge and skills in the evaluation of global policy are also below average, affecting my ability to influence health policies at local, state, and international arenas (Chan et al., 2020). Therefore, I need to explore ways in which I can improve on these aspects of professional competency as an advanced practice nurse.

Scholarly Activities to Help Achieve NP Competencies

            One of the scholarly activities that I will engage in to achieve nurse practitioner competencies is researching issues that affect advanced practice nursing. I will research and publish articles on emerging issues in advanced practice nursing and critique the recommended practices for patient care. I will also share my research findings with other healthcare providers to inform their practice (Kirkman et al., 2018). The research will broaden my understanding of new practice aspects and recommendations that should be incorporated to enhance care outcomes for diverse populations.

The other scholarly activity that I will engage in to achieve nurse practitioner competencies is attending scientific conferences related to nursing and healthcare. Scientific conferences will expose me to new practice interventions used in nursing practice. They will also broaden my understanding of the translation of evidence into practice. The conferences will also strengthen my understanding of how to enhance advanced nursing practice through research, education, and advocacy (Kross & Guo, 2019). Therefore, through the above activities, I believe that I will achieve the stated nursing practice competencies for advanced practice nurses.

Leadership Skills

Three Leadership Skills Required to Lead in Complex Systems

            One of the leadership skills that are required by advanced practice nurses to lead within complex systems is team skills. A nurse practitioner should be an active team player in teams involved in addressing complex issues in health organizations. The nurse should communicate effectively with others and drive the collective realization of the team objectives (Anderson, 2018). The nurse should also practice effective team leadership skills such as delegation, open communication, transparency, and encouraging innovation among those he or she leads.

The other skill is problem-solving. As leaders, nurse practitioners should possess adequate knowledge and skills in solving organizational problems. They should be able to utilize ethical problem-solving methods in determining the best courses of action in case of ethical dilemmas in their practice. Nurse practitioners should also be able to prioritize the alternatives that are needed to address the identified organizational problems (Heinen et al., 2019). The last leadership skill needed for nurse practitioners to lead in complex systems is active listening. Nurse practitioners should be active listeners. They should be able to understand the actual needs, values, and preferences of their patients and other healthcare providers. Active listening contributes to trust, enhanced understanding of the patient’s needs, and patient-centeredness in the care process (Heinen et al., 2019).

Two Strategies to Help Develop NP Leadership Skills

            One of the strategies that I will consider to develop my nursing practitioner leadership skills is engaging in continuous learning activities. I will actively explore the available opportunities for leadership growth such as training on excellent leadership practices. I will also immerse myself in the emerging evidence about best leadership practices in nursing and healthcare (Grossman & Valiga, 2020). I will also accept delegated leadership roles and seek to assist others in completing their assigned complex roles.

The second strategy that I will explore to develop my nurse practitioner leadership skills is working on my identified strengths and weaknesses. I will always strive to understand areas of my strength and weaknesses as a leader. I will emphasize utilizing my strengths to overcome the identified weaknesses and threats for continuous professional development as a nurse leader. I will also incorporate reflective practice into my professional life to identify the things that I do well and areas of practice that require improvement. Reflective practice will contribute to the continuous growth and development of my leadership skills.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Florida Board of Nursing has developed requirements for advanced practice nursing education, licensure, and practice. Nurse practitioners in Florida have independent practice authority and expanded prescription authority. I have areas of strength that relate to the nurse practitioner’s core competencies and opportunities that I need to explore for my professional growth. Nurse practitioners should possess unique leadership skills such as team and active listening skills for them to lead complex organizational systems. Interventions that include focusing on my strengths and weaknesses and lifelong learning will contribute to the development of my desired leadership skills as a nurse practitioner.

NR 500 Week 4: APN Professional Development Plan Paper References

Anderson, C. (2018). Exploring the role of advanced nurse practitioners in leadership. Nursing Standard.

Board, S. N. (2018). Core competencies of advanced practice nurse.

Chan, T. E., Lockhart, J. S., Thomas, A., Kronk, R., & Schreiber, J. B. (2020). An integrative review of nurse practitioner practice and its relationship to the core competencies. Journal of Professional Nursing, 36(4), 189–199.

Grossman, S. C., & Valiga, T. M. (2020). The New Leadership Challenge: Creating the Future of Nursing. F.A. Davis.

Heinen, M., van Oostveen, C., Peters, J., Vermeulen, H., & Huis, A. (2019). An