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Nicole Brassington, RN National Best Practices: Essentials Assignment September 7, 2012 NSG 310 Midway College

NATIONAL BEST National Best Practices: Essentials Assignment According to The Essentials of Baccalaureate Nursing Education for Professional Nursing Practice, the fundamental aspect of general nursing practice requires a combination of direct and indirect patient care. The role of the nurse generalist is to provide direct care of the sick in and across all environments, design, manage, coordinate care and be a member of a profession. A defining feature of professional nursing practice focuses on health promotion and prevention and risk reduction using advances in science and technology to predict trends in health care. Professional nurses will focus on patient education and care by designing and

implementing measures to modify risk factors and promote healthy lifestyles for patients (2008). As an Open Heart Recovery/Cardiovascular Intensive Care nurse I see a large number of patients with hypertension especially thirty something African-Americans. In my practice I have discovered that this is due to a lack of education. I would like to be able to help prevent this pending epidemic by providing education and health promotion. I always planned to continue my education past the Associate degree level. However, my current job made me decide to pursue the Bachelors of Science degree sooner. I know that obtaining my Bachelors of Science degree will allow me to advance my career. It is also required to obtain a Masters of NursingFamily Practitioner degree. The American Association for Colleges and Universities (AACU) definition of liberal education is a combination sciences and art. A liberal education is designed to foster critical thinking using knowledge of science, cultures, society, practical skills and an active commitment to personal and social responsibility (American Association of Colleges and Universities, 2008). According to a study by the International Journal of Nursing Education Scholarship, liberal education is based on the study of the liberal arts and intended to bring about the improvement,

NATIONAL BEST discipline, or free development of the mind or spirit. Both definitions are appropriate to

professional nursing. As a professional nurse you are required to provide holistic care and critical think. A liberal education will provide knowledge that requires a student to critical think. The ability to look at the overall picture and think critically is invaluable in the nursing profession. A liberal education will assist the BSN student to shaping his/her values and standards to address four major trends. These trends include an aging population, diverse family and community structures, and increasing global interdependence, as well as economic and political changes in the United States healthcare system (AACU, 2008). These trends have led to challenges for our nations economy. Advances in medical technology have led to an aging population. As a result, there has been an increase in healthcare costs across the nation. Many challenges have arisen from the diverse family and community structures. Recently, an increase in community based health care clinics have helped bridge the gap in prevention of disease in minorities by providing convenient close to home healthcare services. Increasing global interdependence is also a trend that is causing issues. The recent N1H1 virus was a perfect example of global interdependence. An epidemic in China can quickly be spread around the world as a result of the new global interdependence. The Keeping Health Affordable Act of 2010 caused an uproar among Americans during the summer of 2010. This attempt to make healthcare affordable for millions of Americans was depicted as a socialist takeover of the current healthcare system as we know it. Applying knowledge of social and cultural factors to the care of diverse populations is important in my scope of practice. As an Open Heart Recovery/Cardiovascular Intensive Care nurse I care for a variety of patients from various social and cultural backgrounds that are in various stages of the life span. By obtaining my BSN and developing the ability to apply

NATIONAL BEST knowledge of social and cultural factors to the care of this diverse population will be invaluable in my practice. After reviewing the National League for Nursing (NLN) Competency Model and Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) competencies several core values were identified. These core values are caring, diversity, ethics, excellence, holism, integrity and patient-centeredness. The core measures for professional identity requires the nurse to be able to express his/her personal identity as a nurse through actions that reflect integrity, a commitment to evidencebased practice, caring, advocacy, and safe, quality care for diverse patients, families, and communities; and a willingness to provide leadership in improving care. When comparing the Essential VIII section and the BSN competencies I found several similarities. The key similarities are caring, ethics and quality care. My professional development is in the infancy stages. As a novice nurse I am gaining knowledge and experience daily. Using the knowledge I gained while obtaining my Associates Degree as well as in nursing orientation I am able to provide safe and effective care for my patients. After I complete by BSN I plan to begin the Clinical Ladders Advancement program offered at my hospital. By participating in this program it will prepare me to be a nurse leader and work on evidenced-based practice studies and patient care improvement initiatives. Currently, an initiative in my unit is preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia or VAP. Evidenced based-practice has shown that one way we can reduce and prevent VAP is my

performing oral care on our mechanically ventilated patients. Our hospital has chosen to use Oral Sage Kits. These kits and oral care is scheduled on our medication administration record to ensure that it is not overlooked. Another evidenced-based practice principle we use to prevent VAP is head of the bed elevation. We keep all of our mechanically ventilated patients at 30

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References American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2008). Essentials of baccalaureate nursing education for professional nursing practice. Washington, D.C.: Author. Jensen, A., & Curtis, M. (2008). A descriptive qualitative study of student learning in a psychosocial nursing class infused with art, literature, music, and film. International Journal Of Nursing Education Scholarship, 5(1), 1-9.