NURS 6003 Discussion: Examining Nursing Specialties
Discussion: Examining Nursing Specialties
You have probably seen one or more of the many inspirational posters about decisions. A visual such as a forked road or a street sign is typically pictured, along with a quote designed to inspire.
Often decisions are not so easily inspired. Perhaps you discovered this when choosing a specialty within the MSN program. This decision is a critical part of your plan for
Discussion Examining Nursing Specialties NURS 6003success, and you no doubt want to get it right. This is yet another area where your network can help, as well as other sources of information that can help you make an informed choice.
To Prepare:
- Reflect on your decision to pursue a specialty within the MSN program, including your professional and academic goals as they relate to your program/specialization.
By Day 3
Post an explanation of your choice of a nursing specialty within the program. Describe any difficulties you had (or are having) in making your choice, and the factors that drove/are driving your decision. Identify at least one professional organization affiliated with your chosen specialty and provide details on becoming a member.
Support main post with 3 of more current, credible sources and cite source within content of posting and on a reference list in proper APA.
By Day 6
Be sure to offer support from at least 2 current, credible sources in each required response to classmates’ main post and cite per APA.
Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days, by sharing your thoughts on their specialty, supporting their choice or offering suggestions if they have yet to choose.
Submission and Grading Information
Grading Criteria
To access your rubric:
Week 6 Discussion Rubric
Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 6
To participate in this Discussion:
Week 6 Discussion
ORDER NOW FOR AN ORIGINAL NURSING ESSAY ASSIGNMENT ON: Discussion: Examining Nursing Specialties
My 20 plus years in nursing is composed of a lot of experiences in many settings and roles and many starts and stops in returning to school. I’m no longer a spring chicken. I think reaching my mid 40’s may have been my propellant to go back to school (and to actually commit to finishing!). Returning to the bedside and taking the stress of leadership responsibilities off my shoulders helped me remember why I became a nurse in the first place and inspired me to do as much as I can to help more. This reckoning was why I decided to return to school and obtain my MSN.
Now that I knew the what and the when, I needed to decide what specialty. I reviewed the descriptions of the different MSN specialty tracks in the online Walden student handbook (waldenu.edu, 2921). I knew my feelings towards leadership were strong enough to drop an anvil on any leadership specialties and I crossed that off my list right away. I wanted something that would allow me to provide the most help to the most people and allow me to be the most marketable to the widest net of opportunities. This is why I chose the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) route. My second choice was Adult Gerontological Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP). I decided against the AGPCNP because I did not want to have any limit on the type of patient’s I would be able to see and treat.
The second part of our discussion this week focuses on affiliation with professional organizations within our chosen field. Our class resources gave us many articles on the importance and benefits of becoming active members in professional organizations. Such benefits include professional development, continuing education, and networking (Echevarria, I., 2018). Larger professional organization also provide membership benefits such as annual national conferences, discounts on goods and services, and the opportunity to earn professional credits (Quin-Szcesuil, 2016). In reviewing the many nurse practitioner organizations, I decided on the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP). The AANP formed by combining the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners and the American College of Nurse Practitioners. (nursepractitionerschools.com). Members of the AANP are described as having the opportunity to make a difference in the strength of the Nurse Practitioner profession. That speaks to me and is in keeping with my personal and professional goals (https://www.aanp.org/membership).
.
References
Be a part of the voice of the nurse practitioner. (n.d.). AANP: American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://www.aanp.org/membership
Echevarria, I. M. (2018). Make connections by joining a professional nursing organization. Nursing, 48(12), 35–38. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.nurse.0000547721.84857.cb
Master of science in nursing. (n.d.). Walden University. Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/master-of-science-in-nursing
Quinn-Szcesuil, J. (2016, March 25). Why you should join a nursing association. Dailynurse.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://dailynurse.com/join-nursing-association/
staff writers. (2020, October 26). List of national, international, & states nurse practitioner associations. nursepractitionerschools.com. Retrieved February 14, 2021, from https://www.nursepractitionerschools.com/blog/np-associations-list/
RESPOND TO AL…
Hello Al,
I agree with your choice of Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) and Adult Gerontological Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP) options as avenues to reach to more people, be more marketable and cast out the widest net of opportunities. The FNP provide a wide range of healthcare services across members of the family of varying ages (Heale et al., 2018). They provide primary care in terms of conducting diagnostic checks and screening for diseases and symptoms, give the treatment and even order for more tests, in general they assume a number of roles and are held more responsible at promoting the health of all the family members. On the other hand, the Adult Gerontological Primary Care Nurse Practitioner offer routine checkups, assessments, immunizations, health counselling and education. I do also agree with you that it is imperative for any practicing nurse to join a professional association to be able to promote career development, increased avenues of continuing education and broaden the professional networks that could be the connections for future job search and opportunities (Gaines, 2019).
References
Heale, R., Dahrouge, S., Johnston, S., & Tranmer, J. E. (2018). Characteristics of Nurse Practitioner Practice in Family Health Teams in Ontario, Canada. Policy, Politics, & Nursing Practice, 19(3-4), 72–81. https://doi.org/10.1177/1527154418792538
Gaines, K. (2019, October 11). You Should Join a Nursing Organization. Here’s Why. Nurse.org. https://nurse.org/articles/benefits-of-nursing-organizations/
Learning Resources
Required Readings
Cherry, B., Caramanica, L, Everett, L. Q., Fennimore, L., & Elaine, S. (2019). Leveraging the
power of board leadership in professional nursing organizations. JONA: The Journal of Nursing
Administration, 49(11), 517-519.
Echevarria, I. M. (2018). Make connections by joining a professional nursing organization.
Nursing, 48(12), 35–38.
Quinn-Szcesuil, J. (2016). Why you should join a nursing association. Retrieved from
Truant, R., & Chan, R. J. (2017). Future ready: Strengthening oncology nursing leadership in the
context of professional oncology nursing organizations. Canadian Oncology Nursing Journal,
27(1), 2-4.
Walden University. (n.d.). Master of Science in Nursing (MSN). Retrieved October 12, 2018,
from https://www.waldenu.edu/masters/master-of-science-in-nursing
Document: Academic Success and Professional Development Plan Template (Word document)
Choose among the following to review your specialization’s Scope and Standards of
Practice or Competencies:
American Nurses Association. (2015). Nursing informatics: Scope and standards of practice
(2nd ed.). Silver Spring, MD: Author.
Nursing Informatics
E-book: Nursing Informatics: Scope and Standards of Practice
“The Scope of Nursing Informatics Practice: Functional Areas of Nursing
Informatics” (pp. 18–3
Nursing Education
Website: Competencies for the Academic Nurse Educator
National League for Nursing. (2019). Nurse educator core competency. Retrieved from
http://www.nln.org/professional-development-programs/competencies-for-nursing-
education/nurse-educator-core-competency
Note: The competencies for the Academic Nurse Educator do not encompass the competencies
or scope and standards of practice for the Nursing Professional Developer. The set of
competencies associated with that specific role within the Nurse Education specialization will be
examined in future competencies throughout your specialization program of study.
Nurse Executive
Website: Nurse Executive Competencies
American Organization for Nursing Leadership. (2015). AONL Nurse Executive competencies.
Retrieved from https://www.aonl.org/resources/nurse-leader-competencies
Public Health Nursing
Website: Public Health Nurse Competencies
Quad Council Coalition. (2018). Community/Public Health Nursing [C/PHN] competencies.
Retrieved from http://www.quadcouncilphn.org/documents-3/2018-qcc-competencies/
American Nurses Association. (2013). Public health nursing: Scope and standards of practice
(2nd ed.) Silver Spring, MD: Author.
Public Health Nursing
E-book: Public Health Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice
Optional Resources
Walden University. (n.d.). Subject Research: Nursing. Retrieved November 9, 2018, from
https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/library/subject/nursing