In Week 1, we discussed the idea that the foundation of YOUR emerging legacy is the current individual experience and knowledge that you bring to the profession. Your experience and knowledge are an invaluable and incredible contribution to the safety and quality of health care. In a recent report in the American Nurses Association (ANA) journal American Nurse Today, Fitzpatrick (2015)concludes that “nurses are the last defense in patient safety.” According to a Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Report (2008), nurse are the “sharp end” of patient care, in that nurses provide the closest and most continuous care of patients. As a practicing Registered Nurse, you are a full partner in and integral part of the health care team!
As a Registered Nurse, you have been carrying out six top aims to improve health care as stated by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI; n.d.). With compassion and vigilance, for example, nurses are at the forefront in maintaining a safe environment for patient welfare. Additionally, nurses are working to improve health care that is effective, or based on scientific knowledge, and that is patient-centered, timely, efficient, and equitable.
Let us focus for a moment on the term equitable, the last of the IHI aims. Equitable care means care that does not vary in quality because of personal characteristics such as gender, geographic location, and socioeconomic status. You are going to read more about equitable care in your assignments and provide your own comments and insights into that IHI aim.
The IHI has also concluded that nurses are critical to the future of health care. The IHI predicts that nurses will play a critical role in producing safe, quality care for all patients in the health care system.
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) also made several recommendations for the future of nursing (Institute of Medicine, 2010):
- Nurses should practice to the full extent of their education and training.
- Nurses should achieve higher levels of education through an improved education system that promotes seamless academic progression.
- Nurses should be full partners with physicians and other health care professionals in a redesigned health care system.
- Effective workforce planning and policy making should be enhanced through better data collection and improved information infrastructure.
Without you, health care has little or no future. You are called to act as an indispensable part of the future of health care and an invaluable member of the nursing team that is already the last defense in patient care. Your Walden education will build upon and complement the rich individual experience and knowledge that you bring to the profession and to Walden.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
- Analyze the critical role of nursing in the future of health care
- Analyze the impact of nursing practice on the quality, safety, and equitability of patient care
- Analyze the leadership role of nurses
- Apply time management techniques in virtual context
- Apply strategies to improve writing
Learning Resources
Required Readings
Fitzpatrick, M. A. (2015). The essence of nursing: It’s time to put basic nursing care back in the spotlight. American Nurse Today, 10(5). Retrieved from http://www.americannursetoday.com//wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Essence-Supplement_page-2.pdf
Institute for Healthcare Improvement. (n.d.). Across the chasm: Six aims for changing the health care system. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://www.ihi.org/resources/Pages/ImprovementStories/AcrosstheChasmSixAimsforChangingtheHealthCareSystem.aspx
Institute of Medicine. (2010). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. Retrieved from http://www.nacns.org/docs/toolkit/5-IOM-Report.pdf.
Required Media
Walden University. (2020b). Section 2: Time management and organization [Video]. In Online student roundtable discussion. Walden University Blackboard. /orders/class.waldenu.edu
Writing Resources and Program Success Tools
Document: Academic Writing Expectations (AWE) Checklist, Weeks 1–3 (Word document)
This checklist will help you self-assess your writing to see if it meets academic writing standards for this course.
Walden University. (n.d.-e). Common course assignments: Discussion posts. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/assignments/discussionpost
Walden University. (n.d.-o). Using evidence: Overview. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/evidence
Walden University. (n.d.-f). Grammarly: Accessing Grammarly. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/grammarly/accessing
Walden University. (n.d.-h). Paragraphs: Overview. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://academicguides.waldenu.edu/writingcenter/paragraphs
Walden University. (2013, July 3). WriteCast episode 3: Creating a successful paragraph [Podcast]. Retrieved from http://waldenwritingcenter.blogspot.com/2013/07/writecast-episode-3-creating-successful.html
Time Management Tool Kit
Cook, L., & Bergren, D. (2011). Time management strategies. Retrieved from /orders/youtu.be/jNLwj_i6MLU
Document: Time Management Tracking Table (Word Document)
This table is part of the Assignment for this week and will require you to think about how you use and manage your time as a student at Walden.
William, D. K. (n.d.). 10 proven time management skills you should learn today. Retrieved September 22, 2015, from http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/10-proven-time-management-skills-you-should-learn-today.html
Optional Resources
Institute of Medicine. (2015). The future of nursing: Leading change, advancing health. Retrieved from http://iom.nationalacademies.org/Reports/2010/The-Future-of-Nursing-Leading-Change-Advancing-Health.aspx.
Discussion: The Most Trusted Profession
Nurses are the most honest and ethical professionals in America, according to Gallup polls for more than 12 years in a row. In 2014, 80 percent of Americans said that nurses have “very high” or “high” standards of honesty and ethics, compared with 7% and 8% ratings, respectively, for members of Congress and salespeople. According to Pamela Cipiriano, President of the 35th American Nurses Association (ANA) (2015, March 01), “The public places its faith in nurses to practice ethically.”
A patient’s health, autonomy, and even life or death can be affected by a nurse’s decisions and actions. The IOM’s recommendation to increase the role of nursing in both present and future health care practice underscores the nexus between the decisions and actions of nurses and the health and outcomes of the patients cared for by nurses.
The critical role of nurses in present and future health care makes it imperative that nurses be knowledgeable about the ANA’s Code of Ethics with Interpretive Statements (2015) (the “Code”). As the cornerstone document of the nursing profession, the Code reflects the evolution of health care and considers the most current ethical challenges nurses face in practice. The Codeupholds the best interests of patients, families, and communities.
To prepare
- Review the Discussion Rubric for Week 2, provided in the Course Information area or accessible through the link below.
- Review this week’s Writing Resources and Program Success Tools, specifically:
- Academic Writing Expectations (AWE) Checklist, Weeks 1–3
- “Paragraphs: Overview” (Walden University, n.d.-h)
- “Using Evidence: Overview” (Walden University, n.d.-o)
- WriteCast Episode 3: Creating A Successful Paragraph Podcast (Walden University, 2013, July 3)
- Read the following articles, provided in this week’s Learning Resources:
- “The Essence of Nursing: It’s Time to Put Basic Nursing Care Back in the Spotlight” (Fitzpatrick, 2015)
- The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health (Institute of Medicine, 2010)
- Build on your own personal experience by thinking about how you might relate the information in the two articles to your own nursing experience. For example, pick out important points from the articles and connect them to your own work.
By Day 3
Post a 2-paragraph response (of at least 350 words) to one of the options below. Develop and post cohesive paragraphs and use evidence to support your ideas. The practice of writing paragraphs is essential to good writing. Focus each paragraph on one main idea or goal. Use the writing resources, writing samples, and Discussion Rubric to develop your post.
Option 1
As a result of its deliberations, the IOM committee formulated four key messages to support efforts to improve the health of the U.S. population through the contributions nurses can make to the delivery of care. Provide one or more examples of how you or a colleague has practiced one or more of the IOM recommendations to take the lead effectively or be in charge of an issue or patient rather than just “being at the table.”
OR
Option 2
Fitzpatrick (2015) describes how certain characteristics and competencies set nursing and nurses apart from other professions and practitioners. Describe how your nursing practice and ethical decision-making skills have furthered the quality and safety of patient care.
By Day 7
Read two or more of your colleagues’ postings for the Discussion question.
Respond with suggestions to two or more of your colleagues by confirming their critical role in the health care system.
Return to this Discussion in a few days to read the responses to your initial posting. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you have gained as a result of the comments your classmates made.
Post a discussion entry on 3 different days of the week.
Submission and Grading Information
Grading Criteria
To access your rubric:
Week 2 Discussion Rubric
Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 7
To participate in this Discussion:
Week 2 Discussion
Assignment 1: Journal: Time Management (Observe, Process, Reflect)
Returning to school to earn your next degree is a wonderful goal, and balancing family, work, and school can seem daunting. Often when focusing on one task, you lose track of others. That is why it is important to have a plan for stepping out of your other roles and into your new role as student. We all have multiple roles in life. Being engaged in your classwork requires you to plan, prioritize, and create a space in which learning takes place.
For this assignment, you consider how to address distractions you might encounter as a student at Walden.
To prepare
- Review the Week 2 Assignment 1 Rubric, provided in the Course Information area.
- Complete the Time Management Tracking Table listed in the Time Management Tool Kit.
- Read or view at least one additional resource listed in the Time Management Tool Kit based upon your specific needs.
- Set a timer (on the stove, a clock, or on your phone) and write for 10 minutes without stopping.
By Day 7
Submit a minimum 150-word Journal Assignment. Journal about one aspect of the classroom resources (Assignments, Discussions, or assigned readings) that surprised you. Additionally, journal about one or both of the options below:
Option 1
What concerns do you have about managing distractions and obtaining the support you need to be successful? Include how you plan to make certain that you have support, and how you will take personal responsibility for your own success.
OR
Option 2
What study rituals are you putting in place, and how will these rituals help you focus and decrease distractions? Share your plan to develop rituals to help you transition into the role of Walden student.
This Assignment is for you to share your feelings. There are no rules, and you will not be graded on your writing.
Submission and Grading Information
To submit your completed Assignment 1 for review and grading, do the following:
- Please save your Assignment using the naming convention “WK2Assgn1+last name+first initial.(extension)” as the name.
- Click the Week 2 Assignment 1 Rubric to review the Grading Criteria for the Assignment.
- Click the Week 2 Assignment 1 link. You will also be able to “View Rubric” for grading criteria from this area.
- Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK2Assgn1+last name+first initial.(extension)” and click Open.
- Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.
Grading Criteria
To access your rubric:
Week 2 Assignment 1 Rubric
Submit Your Assignment 1 by Day 7
To submit your Assignment:
Week 2 Assignment 1
Assignment 2: Improving Writing: The “Grammarly” Report
Grammarly is a writing enhancement platform that helps make you a better writer by correcting more than 250 grammatical mistakes, while also catching contextual spelling errors and poor vocabulary usage. All you have to do is submit your work—and Grammarly will work its magic!
For this Assignment, you will practice using Grammarly by submitting your Week 1 Discussion posts to the Grammarly platform.
To prepare
- Review the Grading Rubric for Week 2 Assignment 2 provided in the Course Information area.
- Review the following documents to guide you (found at the end of the submission instructions):
-
- Grammarly Report Instructions (PDF)
- Copy and Paste (PDF)
- Review the tutorial Grammarly: Accessing Grammarly (Walden University, n.d.-f) from this week’s Learning Resources.
- Access the Grammarly Student Login website and follow the instructions for creating a free Grammarly student account. (A link to Grammarly is found at the end of these instructions.)
- Access your Discussion posts from Week 1. You may find it helpful to copy and paste it into a word processing document (such as in Microsoft Word).
- Submit your Word Document that contains the Week 1 Discussion to Grammarly.
- Note: Submit your work to Grammarly no later than Day 4 due to occasional turn-around delays from Grammarly.
Document: Grammarly Report Instructions (PDF)
Grammarly Assignment
- Once you receive you Grammarly Report back regarding your Week 1 Discussion post, upload your Grammarly Report for grading using the Assignment submission link.
- Please save your Assignment using the following naming convention: WK2Assgn2+last name+first initial.
- Submit your Assignment no later than Day 7.
Document: Copy and Paste (PDF)
Grammarly Student Login
Submission and Grading Information
To submit your completed Assignment for review and grading, do the following:
- Please save your Assignment using the naming convention “WK2Assgn2+last name+first initial.(extension)” as the name.
- Click the Week 2 Assignment 2 Rubric to review the Grading Criteria for the Assignment.
- Click the Week 2 Assignment 2 link. You will also be able to “View Rubric” for grading criteria from this area.
- Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK2Assgn2+last name+first initial.(extension)” and click Open.
- If applicable: From the Plagiarism Tools area, click the checkbox for I agree to submit my paper(s) to the Global Reference Database.
- Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.
Grading Criteria
To access your rubric:
Week 2 Assignment 2 Rubric
Check your Assignment draft for authenticity
To check your assignment draft for authenticity:
Submit your Week 2 Assignment 2 Draft and review the originality report.
Submit Your Assignment by Day 7
To submit your Assignment:
Week 2 Assignment 2
Week in Review
Now you… have analyzed the critical role of nursing in the future and the positive contributions nurses make to the delivery of care. You have also learned to manage distractions and improve your focus as you transition into the role of a Walden student. Next week you will… discuss the ANCC (American Nurses Credentialing Center) and Magnet Recognition Program (Magnet) where nurses appreciate the achievements of other nurses and are recognized for nursing excellence.
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Excellent |
Proficient |
Basic |
Needs Improvement |
| “Option 1 Describe at least two current and/or future challenges in nursing and the solutions that are being proposed to meet those challenges. Explain how furthering your education will enable you to build upon your personal nursing legacy in meeting these types of challenges. OR Option 2 Describe a nurse colleague or current nurse leader who inspires you. Identify and describe how this person’s actions have led to positive outcomes related to patients, peers, and/or supervisors. What do you see yourself doing similarly or differently? “ |
Initial post contains well developed and insightful analysis and brings new insight into the discussion.
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Initial post contains reasonable analysis that is focused and brings insight into the discussion.
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Initial post contains minimal analysis that is somewhat focused and brings limited insight into the discussion.
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Initial post lacks analysis and/or is not focused and brings little or no insight into the discussion.
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| Response Posts “Entered the discussion thread on 3 separate days. Wrote at least two posts to two separate peers. Responses are appropriate to the topic, substantive, and promoted discussion by one or more of the following: • contributing insight to move the discussion forward. • offering substantial and/or different points of view and asks questions to add to discussion • including extra references or websites for peers to consider • relating discussion to different areas of practice and applying concepts to practice **Additional points may be deducted for late posting per the University late policy.” |
Response posts add subtantial ideas and perspectives that invite further analysis and discussion. Participated 3 or more days in the classroom and responded to more than 2 classmates.
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Response posts are proficient and provide adequate analysis and discussion. Participated 3 days in the classroom and responds to at least two classmates.
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Response posts are limited and provide minimal analysis and discussion. Participated less than 3 days in the classroom and/or responds to less than two classmates.
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Response posts are inadequate and provide no analysis of discussion and/ or there is no participation in the classroom.
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| Format and Writing points AWE 1000 Level. Displays sentence and paragraph level skills. Uses evidence from research to support a claim and give credit to the source. |
Discussion posts demonstrate excellence in meeting the 1000 Academic Writing Expectations for this level.
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Discussion posts demonstrate proficiency in meeting the 1 Academic Writing Expectations for this level.
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Discussion posts demonstrate minimal skill in meeting the Academic Writing Expectations for this level.
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Discussion posts demonstrate inadequate skill in meeting the Academic Writing Expectations for this level.
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