The report The Future of Nursing issued by the Institute of Medicine (2010) can have significant implications for the functioning of medical institutions. In particular, it is critical to discuss its implication for the education of nurses, their daily practices such as primary healthcare, and their role as leaders. Overall, it is possible to say in the future, the scope of nurses’ responsibilities can increase significantly.
First of all, the authors of this report emphasize the role of education. In particular, mention that nursing education should become the platform for continuous learning of these professionals (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 163). In other words, their education should continue even after graduation. Furthermore, these professionals should have an in-depth understanding of system-level management and quality improvement methods (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 163). Furthermore, educators should pay more attention to the ability of graduates to adjust to the hospital environment. These requirements can have several implications. First of all, nursing professionals will need to understand the functioning of medical institutions as organizations since this knowledge is necessary for identifying possible drawbacks such as interruptions, delays, dilution of responsibility, and many other issues that eventually adversely affect patients. Secondly, during their studies, nurses will be trained to act as independent learners. For example, more attention will be paid to the evaluation of evidenced-based findings and their application. This skill can be critical for improving patient care or addressing organizational issues such as high turnover (DiCenso, Guyatt, & Ciliska, 2005, p. 21). Moreover, this ability is necessary for the post-graduate education of these people. It is possible that in the future, nurses will be required to have post-graduate degrees since educational attainment is important for the development of leadership skills. These are the main details that should be considered.
Moreover, the requirements included in this document can affect various nursing practices. For example, one can speak about primary healthcare which is aimed at identifying health problems at an early stage or promoting healthy lifestyles. The authors of this report note that in the future, medical professionals will need to deal with a greater number of patients due to the adoption of the Affordable Healthcare Act Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 88). Moreover, nurses will need to improve the quality of services that they provide to patients. To cope with these tasks, nurses should focus on such aspects as the reduction of social disparities, the use of appropriate technology, and the education of patients. They should be ready to work in non-hospital settings. To a great extent, this report can eventually raise the professional standards that nurses need to reach. I will take several steps to achieve the goals identified in this document. First, I will focus on the development of my educational skills. This strategy can help promote healthy lifestyles in the community. Secondly, I will incorporate evidence-based findings in my work. In my view, many studies can demonstrate how nurses can better support the need of patients or eliminate organizational deficiencies. So, this approach can be useful for addressing the needs of patients requiring urgent medical assistance. Furthermore, the objectives identified in this report can be attained provided that nurses and physicians actively interact with one another. In turn, I will adhere to this principle when providing care to patients.
Additionally, the report has significant implications for nurses’ role as leaders. According to this report, nurses should take an active part in identifying potential limitations of the current healthcare models (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 222). Nurses are encouraged to become the “full partners” who can reform the existing healthcare system (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 222). In particular, these professionals should be able to shape the long-term policies of medical institutions. Furthermore, nurses should guide the work of other people, especially new employees. These goals are essential for improving the work of medical organizations. This report can have to change the position of nurses in the workplace. For instance, they may be asked to become the members of various committees that are supposed to design HR policies or quality improvement programs. They will be expected to provide recommendations that can positively impact the experiences of patients. Furthermore, nurses will be required to act as role models for new hires (Barker, 1992). This activity is also an inseparable part of leadership (Barker, 1992). Additionally, these professionals will be asked to display their leadership skills in non-hospital settings such as schools (Institute of Medicine, 2010, p. 7). So, these medical workers will need to adopt a dramatically different attitude toward their work.
These examples indicate that in the future, the professional standards set for nurses can be raised significantly. For instance, they will be required to become life-long learners and informed decision-makers who can adequately respond to the challenges faced by medical organizations. Yet, the goals included in the IMO report provided that hospital administrators are willing to empower and motivate nurses. This is one of the details that should not be overlooked.
Reference List
Barker, A. (1992). Transformational Nursing Leadership: A Vision for the Future. Jones & Bartlett Learning.
DiCenso, A., Guyatt, G., & Ciliska, D. (2005). Evidence-based Nursing: A Guide to Clinical Practice. New York, NY: Elsevier Health Sciences.
Institute of Medicine. (2010). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.