DNP essential VIII. Advanced Nursing Practice
Roles of a DNP include some of these listed below. Improvement of nursing practice is achieved through advanced knowledge in clinical, faculty, and leadership roles. Many of the roles of employed DNPs are exemplified in the previous seven essentials. In regard to specific nursing practice, I will focus on the role of educator and mentor.
Educator: Utilization of advanced skills and knowledge in identified areas of nursing practice with translation of scientific into practice to prepare individuals for interdisciplinary practice and patient-centered care. Another aspect of advanced practice nursing regards to patient education. One of the major abilities of the DNP is our ability to communicate with our patients’ understandings of their diagnoses and treatment plans. After closely assessing this essential I can now display my levels of competency.
Examples of documenting this Essential are available below:
Reflections
Through both of these two roles, I have developed my expertise through my DNP program. I have learned to become a better educator of my patients employing evidence-based practice guidelines to provide the best quality care to them. As well, I have improved my ability to educate students and learned skills to employ as a future professor as outlined in my career development plan. My philosophy of teaching is included below for guidance into my beliefs on education.
I have served as a preceptor to many students but increased my skills at precepting as I progressed through the DNP program. I was able to demonstrate the professional role to graduating NP students and learning this new role can be very difficult for some new graduates. Helping to demonstrate the leadership and responsibility that comes from being a professional nurse I have assisted in guiding these students to become professional nursing leaders and advocates for their patients. I have my own business Immediate Impulse,LLC where I provide BLS, ACLS, PALS certification to health care professionals.
I also continue to serve as a mentor through both my leadership and scholarly skills. Consistently, I assist students below myself in BSN and MSN programs in regards to ideas for papers, capstone projects, and various other items. I mentor students and other APRNs by serving as a leader in professional organizations demonstrating the importance of this DNP education. Due to this need for mentorship I have created my own mentorship program QCC (Queen Collegiate Community) and my goal is to impact the lives of future nurses and to increase the number of nurses in underserved communities.