Professional Licensing Requirements

Professionalism and Professionalization of Nursing- can rename it Application more general Professional Licensing Requirements The profession of nursing and a nurse's scope of practice are defined by law and regulations. In addition, the American Nurses Association has developed the Nursing Scope & Standards of Practice, which outlines the professional role and standards for practice. For this Application Assignment, locate and examine the regulations for licensure required by your state including any mandatory continuing education requirements. Explore the influence of professional nursing associations and legislation on nursing and health care practice in your state. Based on this information, write a two- to three-page paper addressing the following: •What is a nurse's scope of practice and professional responsibilities based on your state's definition and requirements for licensure? •Examine the professional codes of conduct and professional standards discussed in your textbooks. Why are such standards important, and how do they influence nursing practice? Week 5: Professionalism and Professionalization of Nursing Nursing has taken many positive steps toward being considered a profession. Licensure, certification, credentialing, and accountability are now all part of the customary practices of nursing. Professional nursing associations further the professionalism of nursing through support of practices based on professional codes of conduct, standards, and evidence-based practices. Nursing associations and unions support their members through various means. Nurses are becoming more involved in the political processes that influence both licensure and delivery of care. The role of the nurse is defined by the Nurse Practice Act and Scope of Practice. Because each state has its own Practice Act, it is even more critical that nurses are engaged in their professional associations and collectively bring their concerns to policy makers with a united voice. This week, you will further examine the characteristics of nursing as a profession. You will explore the role of professional organizations on current nursing practice and examine professional codes of conduct and standards. As you review the resources and information this week, you will see how these codes and standards impact nursing behavior. Objectives Students will: •Assess the influence of professional organizations on nursing practice and health care delivery •Describe how professional codes of conduct and professional standards influence professional nurse behaviors 2)******* Professional Licensing Requirements - This Application Assignment is due by Day 7 of Week Five. The profession of nursing and a nurse’s scope of practice are defined by law and regulations. Locate and examine the regulations for licensure required by your state including any mandatory continuing education requirements. Then explore the influence of the American Nurses Association standards as well as legislation on nursing and health care practice in your state. Write a 2-3 page paper addressing a nurse’s scope of practice and professional responsibilities based on your state’s definition and requirements for licensure. Also, examine the American Nurses Association code of conduct and standards of nursing practice, both general and specific and the ways in which those standards influence nursing practice. Use the following guidelines and evaluation criteria. Use the headings for each section below. Use a minimum of five references from the professional nursing literature in the assigned course readings and other references in the Walden Library. If they are relevant, you may use one or two professional web sites in addition to the literature references. Begin this paper with a brief paragraph that provides an overview of the assignment and its purpose. The heading for this paragraph is the same as the title of the paper. This will be about 2-3 sentences. The last sentence in this paragraph is a sentence that begins "The purpose of this paper is to ¨. This paragraph is worth 20 points. Scope of practice - 50 points Discuss the RN Scope of Practice in your state based on your state’s definition of nursing practice and requirements for initial and continuing licensure. Include any continuing education requirements. Professional standards - 60 points Describe codes and standards discussed in your textbooks for professional nursing practice. Discuss at least 2 specific ways in which these codes and standards influence nursing practice. Summary - 20 points End the paper with a one-paragraph summary of the main points of the paper. Format/style Proofread the paper and correct any typos, grammar, spelling, punctuation, syntax, or APA format errors before submitting your pape. Up to 30 points can be deducted from the grade for this assignment for these types of errors, or for not using at least the minimum number of required professional literature references. Total points for assignment = 150 points. TEXTS*****Course Text: Professional Issues in Nursing: Challenges and Opportunities ◦Chapter 22, "Nursing and Public Policy: Getting Involved" Chapter 22 explores the role of nurses in changing policy regarding nursing practices. The chapter reviews historic foundations and current policy and politics. ◦Chapter 23, "Nursing's Professional Associations" This chapter identifies different professional nursing associations. It explains the growth of these associations in general and their role in shaping nursing into a profession TEXT@ ***Course Text: Policy and Politics in Nursing and Health Care ◦Chapter 82, "Current Issues in Nursing Associations" This chapter identifies the issues confronted by the nursing profession and discusses the role of nursing associations in addressing these challenges. ◦Chapter 83, "Professional Nursing Associations: Meeting Needs of Nurses and the Profession" Chapter 83 briefly describes the evolution of nursing organizations, as well as the opportunities and benefits afforded to their members. •Course Text: Fowler, M. D., & American Nurses Association. (2008). Guide to the code of ethics for nurses: Interpretation and application. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. •Course Text: American Nurses Association. (2010). Nursing's social policy statement: The essence of the profession. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. •Course Text: American Nurses Association. (2010). Nursing: Scope & standards of practice. Silver Spring, MD: American Nurses Association. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. Article Articles *** Article •Mirr Jansen, M. P. (2006). Professional issues: Licensure, certification, prescriptive privileges, credentialing, and legal issues. In M. P. Mirr Jansen & M. Zwygart-Stauffacher (Eds.), Advanced practice nursing (3rd ed., 107–120). New York: Springer. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases. This article examines professional issues that advanced practice nurses (APNs) deal with on a regular basis. The article focuses on licensure, certification, privileges, and legal issues faced by APNs. Optional Resources •Course Text: Professional Issues in Nursing: Challenges and Opportunities ◦Chapter 19, "The Nursing Profession's Historic Struggle to Increase Its Power Base" •Professional Nursing Organizations ◦AACN (2008). The impact of education on nursing practice. Retrieved January 2, 2009 from http://www(dot)aacn(dot)nche(dot)edu/. ◦ANA (2009). ANA's constituent member associations. Retrieved March 13, 2009 from http://www(dot)nursingworld(dot)org/functionalmenucategories/aboutana/whoweare/cma.aspx. ◦ANCC (2009). Board certification for nurses making a difference . Retrieved March 13, 2009 from http://www(dot)nursecredentialing(dot)org/default.aspx. ◦ICN (2009). International Council of Nurses. Retrieved January 9, 2009 from http://www(dot)icn(dot)ch/. ◦NLN (2007). National League for Nursing. Retrieved March 13, 2009 from http://www(dot)nln(dot)org/ *******Professional Licensing Requirements - This Application Assignment is due by Day 7 of Week Five. The profession of nursing and a nurse’s scope of practice are defined by law and regulations. Locate and examine the regulations for licensure required by your state including any mandatory continuing education requirements. Then explore the influence of the American Nurses Association standards as well as legislation on nursing and health care practice in your state. Write a 2-3 page paper addressing a nurse’s scope of practice and professional responsibilities based on your state’s definition and requirements for licensure. Also, examine the American Nurses Association code of conduct and standards of nursing practice, both general and specific and the ways in which those standards influence nursing practice. Use the following guidelines and evaluation criteria. Use the headings for each section below. Use a minimum of five references from the professional nursing literature in the assigned course readings and other references in the Walden Library. If they are relevant, you may use one or two professional web sites in addition to the literature references. Begin this paper with a brief paragraph that provides an overview of the assignment and its purpose. The heading for this paragraph is the same as the title of the paper. This will be about 2-3 sentences. The last sentence in this paragraph is a sentence that begins "The purpose of this paper is to ¨. This paragraph is worth 20 points. Scope of practice - 50 points Discuss the RN Scope of Practice in your state based on your state’s definition of nursing practice and requirements for initial and continuing licensure. Include any continuing education requirements. Professional standards - 60 points Describe codes and standards discussed in your textbooks for professional nursing practice. Discuss at least 2 specific ways in which these codes and standards influence nursing practice. Summary - 20 points End the paper with a one-paragraph summary of the main points of the paper. Format/style Proofread the paper and correct any typos, grammar, spelling, punctuation, syntax, or APA format errors before submitting your pape. Up to 30 points can be deducted from the grade for this assignment for these types of errors, or for not using at least the minimum number of required professional literature references. Total points for assignment = 150 points.

Proposed APA Formatting Guidelines

The Walden University School of Nursing uses the American Psychological Association (APA) formatting guidelines. Depending upon the rubric for each assignment, up to 50 points can be deducted for APA formatting errors, grammatical errors as well as typographical errors, spelling, punctuation and syntax (structural elements in phrases or sentences).

APA Formatting                                                                             Possible Point Deduction

1. 1.      Running head:  ALL CAPS on the title page.                                                         1-2
2. ALL CAPS for the running head on  page 2 and  all subsequent pages.    1-2      
3. The words Running head are only written on the title page.                                   1-2
4. Page numbers are inserted in the upper right corner of the page.                1-3
5. The paper written in Times New Roman 12 font                                         1-2
6. The paper is double-spaced throughout the paper.                                       1-3
7. The title of the paper centered at the top of the second page.                                1-2
8. In text citation format –
   1. The author’s name is included(Smith, 2013) for paraphrased material.                                                                                                                            1-2
   2. –“Direct quotes look like this”(Smith, 2013, p.22).                         1-2
   3. Smith and Jones (2013) look like this when using more than one author in the sentence.                                                                                   1-2
   4. When the authors names are used at the end of the sentences, then the formatting should be like this (Smith & Jones, 2013).

The ampersand (&) is used when the parentheses are used.            1-2

1. The period follows the citation and not the sentence (Wall,2014). 1-2
2. Indent paragraphs and second and subsequent lines of references five spaces. 1-2

10.  Spell out acronyms the first time used.                                                        1

11.  Reference list guidelines:

1. The title of the journal or the text book in italics.                            1-2
2. The first letter of the first word of the title of the journal article or the textbook is capitalized, any proper name in the title has the first letter capitalized, and the first letter of the first word following a colon in the title is capitalized.  1-2
3. The reference list is written in alphabetical order by the last name of the author.

                                                                                                         1-2

1. The in text citations must match the reference list.  If Smith and Jones (2013) is used in the paper, then the reference must be on the reference list and in the same order for the authors:                                                                            1-2

Smith, F. & Jones, J. (2013). Education of children with childhood          obesity. Journal of Pediatric Nursing, 66, (2) 25-32. Retrieved from    http://www(dot)pediatricnursing(dot)org/                                                    

1. Web site example –

American Heart Association. (2014). Cardiac enzyme values. Retrieved February           20, 2014 from http://www(dot)AHA(dot)com/full/url/.              1-2

1. Add either the doi number or journal URL for article citations.     1-2

Grammatical Errors, Typographical Errors, Spelling, Punctuation                 Pts Deducted

                                                                                                                                 1-10

Syntax (structural elements in phrases or sentences)

            Points for sentence structure will be deducted within each section of the paper.