Introduction
Ever since the early 1990s, the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties, NONPF, has been overseeing the classification of advanced practice nurse competencies. Core competencies are very essential for all nurses as they signify the admittance into practice following completion of their education course (Hamric & Hanson, 2013). In the year 2011, NONPF issued an updated number of core competencies for all nurses. The paper below focuses on an interview conducted with an advanced practice nurse leader.
Questionnaires were utilized in the interview. During the face-to-face interview, I was required to investigate the candidate’s competencies. As such, I utilized open-ended questions to encourage my candidate to respond. Throughout the interview, I was eager to recognize the key competencies necessary for APN role development. The task enabled me to identify the significance of core competencies in health care organizations. By doing so, I noted how the interviewee accomplished his competency. I also noted how the interviewee portrayed his competency skills in his place of work.
Description of the NONPF NP Core Competencies
NONPF NP core competencies have been utilized for the last two decades. At the present, nine NP core competencies are in operation. They comprise the health provision system, leadership, policy, quality, technology, information literacy, ethics, autonomous practice, practice analysis, and scientific foundation competencies (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). Notably, the competencies are restructured frequently. The NP competencies assimilate the present DNP’s fundamental competencies. Together, they act as supervisory principles for education programs (NONPF, 2011). The programs prepare nurse practitioners to cultivate comprehensive scope of practice as ratified independent experts. Based on the above, it is apparent that the competencies are key conducts of all nurse practitioners. As such, the above competencies are portrayed after the conclusion of a nursing education course regardless of the population focus of the course. Notably, the competencies are necessary for all nurse practitioners because they are required to tackle multifaceted challenges in the healthcare sector
After completing their education course, all nurses should demonstrate awareness, expertise, and capabilities in nursing competencies (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). As such, these competencies are required for autonomous clinical practice. The NP key competencies are guided through direct patient care proficiencies. The proficiencies emphasize sovereign, inter-specialized practice and organized abilities in evaluating and dispensing fact-based patient-focused care. The proficiencies also emphasize liberal knowledge of the healthcare provision system. Doctoral-prepared nurse practitioners utilize scientific-based knowledge in their customary practice for excellent care (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). Through this knowledge, the experts can portray their skills in IT literacy. They are also capable of engaging in practice investigations to enhance health results, health policies, and healthcare provision. Expanses of improved knowledge, abilities, and proficiency encompass improved communication skills, teamwork, multifaceted policymaking, management, and health care corporations.
Description of the Interview with the APN
After conducting a thorough analysis, I realized that there were a number of potential interviewees in the region. Among the interviewees, I chose Stephen Patten as my candidate. I undertook the interview on 1 July 2015. My interviewee is an advanced practice nurse. He is employed at the Portland Veteran’s Hospital. As such, he works in a surgical division. Patten undertakes his responsibilities with the help of more than 110 nurses in his section. Together, they handle more than 7000 surgery patients in a year.
During the interview, Patten pointed out that his key responsibility was to aid in preparing clients for surgery and convalesce post-operation. Patten also indicated that he routinely focuses his attention on two other scopes of influence. The scopes are collaborating with nurses to enhance the quality of care and developing structures and approaches to make surgical management safe and effective. Patten also stated that his collaboration with other nurses has enabled him to double-check that precise antibiotics are offered to his patients in time after the surgical operation has been undertaken. During the interview, he also revealed that he does a follow-up to ensure that the antibiotics are stopped before 48 hours lapses. He also stated that the collaborations have allowed him to make certain that catheter use is withdrawn before 48 hours lapses after surgical treatment to avoid adulteration. He also makes sure that patients are offered indispensable medicines like beta-blockers to guard their hearts.
I chose Patten as my candidate because of his vast experience in clinical nursing. As an advanced practice nurse, Patten has worked for more than 30 years in the health care sector. Before specializing as a CNS professional, he worked at a trauma center. In the interview, Patten offered me significant information like the present and the past core competencies’ reports.
Correspondingly, I chose Patten as my candidate because of his respectable success in nursing. The American Nurses Association has recognized his roles at the Portland Veteran’s Hospital. With respect to the illustrations, it is obvious that Patten was the best-fitted individual to be an interviewee for my study.
Study of the Discussed APN Competencies
Original Sources: Patten’s Application to APN Role
Based on the above analysis, it is apparent that a comprehensive knowledge of core competencies by all nurses is essential. The knowledge offers supervisory principles for learning programs. Through this, the nurses are prepared to develop a comprehensive scope of practice as approved independent experts (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). The competencies act as key conduct of all nurse practitioners. As such, all nurses are required to portray all the nine competencies after completing their education course.
Patten’s Application to APN Role
During the interview, I noted that the most important competencies with respect to Patten’s practice were direct quality, policy, leadership, and practice inquiry. He was able to portray the above competencies several times in his practice. Through quality competency, Patten has utilized the best accessible facts to gauge the relation, fee, dominance, and safety and their effect on health care. Similarly, the competency has enabled him to advance the quality of nursing practice.
During the interview, Patten pointed out that the main ambition was to increase the quality by developing structures and means to make surgical treatment safe and effective. Concerning leadership competency, Patten undertakes multidimensional and progressive management roles to initiate and enhance transformations. The competency also offers him with leadership ability to cultivate teamwork with numerous shareholders to progress health care (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). The competency also offers him the ability to demonstrate leadership that utilizes lucid and attentive thinking (NONPF, 2011). In the interview, he validated how he was able to consult and work together with other nurses in diverse departments in guaranteeing that the surgical patients’ needs were met. With respect to practice inquiry competency, he explained that he habitually consults with other shareholders and nurses in different departments. Through this, Patten has been able to acquire new knowledge in different scopes (Klein & Kaplan, 2011). The above has also allowed him to guarantee that precise antibiotics are offered to his patients within the right time.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it should be noted that core competencies are very essential for all nurses as they signify the admittance into practice following completion of a nursing course. Ever since the early 1990s, the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties, NONPF, has been authorized to categorize fundamental competencies relevant to nurse practitioners. In the year 2011, NONPF issued an updated number of core competencies for all NPS. At the present, there are nine NP core competencies. They comprise the health provision system, leadership, policy, quality, technology, information literacy, ethics, autonomous practice, practice analysis, and scientific foundation competencies.
In the above study, an interview with a nurse leader was conducted. The interview was undertaken to find the key competencies required for APN role growth. Through this, the interview aimed at recognizing the prominence of core competencies in health care organizations. The candidate selected for the study was Patten. He works in a surgical division. He works with more than 110 nurses in his department. Together, they handle more than 7000 surgery patients in a year. In the discussion, he indicated that his key role was to aid patients in preparation for surgery and convalesce post-operation. Importance of meeting the selected APN competencies within the APN role is vital. As such, they are important for all APNs for them to find the solutions to the multifaceted challenges faced in healthcare.
References
Hamric, A., & Hanson, C. (2013). Advanced Nursing Practice: An Integrative Approach. American Journal of Nursing, 6(1), 16-25.
Klein, T., & Kaplan, L. (2011). Prescribing Competencies for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses.The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 12(1), 115-122.
NONPF (2011). Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies. Washington, DC: NONPF Pub.