My Non-Faculty Career Plan

My Non-Faculty Career Plan

I started my college education at the age of 14. Since that time, I have earned four degrees: two bachelor degrees (Biology and Nursing [BsN]) and two Master's degrees (Biology and Nursing [MsN]). It was an honor to be accepted to medical school. However, I ultimately chose to become a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP). Now in anticipation of completing my Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree, the following report presents an outline of my three-year non-faculty career plan.

My Personal Mission, Vision, Values

The health care delivery system is changing rapidly. Alongside changing policy frameworks, new medical practices and treatments, and the advent of the latest medical technology, the nursing profession is literally being redefined. Perhaps most notably, nurses need to possess special leadership skills and abilities. With the latest (and very ambitious) Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations in mind, my mission, vision, and values are linked to a transformational leadership framework. Most fundamentally, transformational leadership includes “identifying the changes the work environment needs, guide the change by inspiring followers, and create a sense of commitment to change” (Sherman, 2012).

Mission

I am fundamentally committed to delivering consistent, high-quality, evidence-based healthcare to patients. As a DNP, I am also committed to applying my knowledge of scientific foundations to provide direct, quality care. Summarily, my mission is, therefore, to “utilize advanced communication skills, collaboration, complex decision making, leadership and the business of healthcare in rural and underserved populations” (Mizzou Sinclair School of Nursing, 2013). By doing so, I believe that my career path over the next three years will be characterized by job satisfaction and self-actualization.

Vision

My ambitious career vision is to be recognized as one of the best DNPs in the health care delivery system. Thus, I envision myself leading by example and providing competent quality health care. As the health care setting requires, I will use my skills in technology and information literacy. In the process, I will commit myself to practice inquiry to support improved health outcomes, policy, and healthcare delivery (Thomas et al., 2012). I believe this requires a lifelong commitment to learning.

Values

My values lie in moral integrity, proactive focus and encouragement, as well as the virtues inherent to a transformational leader. These virtues include: “sympathy, compassion, faithfulness, truth telling, and love” (LaSala & Bjarnason, 2010). As a DNP, I intend to integrate ethical principles and guidelines in all aspects of job responsibility and practice. Thereby, my values become the binding force for achieving the goals inherent to my professional mission and vision.

First Year after completing the Doctorate of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program

This section includes a description of my intended work environment in the first year after completing the DNP program. Topics include: i) the geographic location, ii) type of setting and the type of clients who will be within my service; iii) the structure, iv) my colleagues and peers; v) potential sources of social and professional support, vi) how I will fit in the structure of the organization, vii) job description/responsibilities and how those responsibilities may change, and viii) how activities will be reimbursed.

Work Environment

Geographic location. The Rolla Family Clinic is located in Rolla, Missouri (Phelps County), 75 miles SE of Columbia, Missouri; 93 miles SW of St. Louis, Missouri; Rolla has a population of 16,367 (City-Town Info, 2014).

Setting and clients within my service. I currently work at the Rolla Family Clinic as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP). I see both walk-in and primary care patients. The clinic provides primary care and urgent care services to all adults and children three months and older. Primary care services are by appointment only. The clinic treats the same types of medical conditions that are treated by primary care physicians. In addition, the Rolla Family Clinic also has x-ray facilities, a trauma room, and occupational health pre-employment physicals and DOT physicals (Rolla Family Clinic, 2010).

My colleagues and peers. I work with two other Family Nurse Practitioners and one physician. I have networking affiliations with colleagues through the Missouri Nurses Association (MONA).

Potential sources of social and professional support. For professional support, I look to the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. For social support, I always look at my husband and our three young children. I anticipate using similar strategies in the coming years of my non-faculty career plan.

How I will fit in the structure of the organization. I am currently successful at fitting into the structure of the Rolla Family Clinic as a Family Nurse Practitioner. After completing my studies, I plan to remain at the clinic as a DNP. I truly enjoy providing quality medical care for people in need. In fact, one patient kindly expressed how well I fit into the structure of the Rolla Family Clinic:

“On my road trip from Illinois to Oklahoma I needed medical assistance and could not have been happier that I stopped at your clinic. The kindness, compassion and stellar care I received was greatly appreciated. Thanks so much for minimizing my injuries, Shaundelle Olusanya and Dr. Olusanya and the nurses and office staff. I am so happy to know that there are practitioners providing care like this. Bravo!!” (Rolla Family Clinic, 2010)

Summarily, I feel like the Rolla Family Clinic is the perfect career fit for me. The next three years will provide me with ample opportunity to utilize the knowledge and skills that I have acquired during my Doctor of Nursing Practice program.

Job description/responsibilities and how those responsibilities may change. As a Family Nurse Practitioner, my patients include everyone from infants to elderly people. I administer to the primary care needs of patients. However, as a DNP, my duties and responsibilities will broaden. DNPs are expected to work more closely with the physician on staff. As the physician on staff is responsible for seeing “patients with chronic unstable medical conditions,” the role of the DNP takes on expanded collaborative meaning and responsibility (Rolla Family Clinic, 2010).Overall, I expect that in the first year after completing my Doctor of Nursing Practice program, I will make a smooth transition into greater responsibility and a larger role at the Rolla Family Clinic.

Professional Development

Professional role development is a vital aspect of advancing my nursing career. As such, certain components of the profession can be strengthened and maintained to provide ideal behaviors as a DNP. These components include:

“(i) taking the right actions to affect health promotion and quality of life; (ii) possessing the knowledge and skills necessary to discern when and when not to respond; (iii) knowing what the appropriate action(s) should be; and (iv) demonstrating a willingness to act, thus supporting the ethical principle of beneficence.” (LaSala & Bjarnason, 2010)

The basic purpose of professional development is to help nurses advance their skills and knowledge in the context of the rapidly changing health care delivery system. Yet, the pace of change/innovation in the health care delivery system can be overwhelming and even intimidating at times. As a nurse, I must, therefore, be morally courageous and confident enough to overcome personal fears while responding to health care delivery situations according to the best interests of Rolla Family Clinic patients (LaSala & Bjarnason, 2010).

Outcomes

In the first year as a DNP, I will seek to ground myself in the knowledge that I acquired during the Doctor Nursing Practice program. I expect to develop competencies in a broad spectrum of areas: monitoring electronic medical data/records to support immunizations, prescriptions, smoking cessation, health preventative screenings, and using medical data to manage the treatment of patients for side-effects and disease trajectory. Further, I will gain significant skill and facility in utilizing evidence-based guidelines to support my DNP practice at Rolla Family Clinic.

Continuing education mechanisms to support professional growth. To keep my skills, current, my continuing medical education will include courses through Audio Digest, training through the American Academy of Nurse practitioner conferences and online courses, and continued attendance of seminars/CME.

Where and how to participate as a leader in professional groups and networks. Missouri Nurses Association (MONA) provides me with one option for participating as a leader in professional groups and networks. I also think that the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners could be an excellent source of professional support. To supplement my learning, I may also continue volunteering at a battered women’s shelter. Thus, over the next three years, I anticipate expanding my participation as a leader in professional groups and networks.

Specific Outcome Objectives

1. Become active in MONA.

2. Establish my role as a DNP.

3. Publish two case studies related to Early Childhood Caries (ECC).

4. Maintain professional licensure and certifications.

Quality mechanisms to evaluate performance. I anticipate that formal performance assessments and reviews will be administered by my superior at Rolla Family Clinic. I will take note of critical performance evaluations. Accordingly, I will make the appropriate adjustments by considering training, education, and other options to support professional growth and development.

How to demonstrate the ability to redesign systems and affect change. To demonstrate the ability to redesign systems and affect change, I intend to act in accordance with the traits and virtues of a transformational leader. Again, a transformational leader is highly skilled at “identifying the changes the work environment needs, guide the change by inspiring followers, and create a sense of commitment to change” (Sherman, 2012). In this way, the transformational leader becomes a fundamental and driving force behind successful organizational and/or systemic change.

Marketing and Self-Promotion to Get and Maintain Position

With my volunteer work at a battered women’s shelter, I market and self-promote by providing education on women’s health issues. Through these classes, I hope that the women will seek medical care. I also hope that the Rolla Family Clinic will receive some additional patient referrals and walk-ins as a result of my work.

Challenges and How to Approach Them

My biggest challenge will be adjusting to the new duties and responsibilities of the job description. Making sound clinical decisions will be a function of applying knowledge and principles that I learned during my Doctor of Nursing Practice program. But even further, in my new position, I will be expected to lead others in an exemplary manner. Therein, I will face the challenge of becoming a transformational leader who is able to inspire and lead others. The goal, in other words, will involve creating a strong sense of commitment to supporting the best interests of Rolla Family Clinic patients.

Three Years after Graduating from DNP Program

This section presents projections for three years after completing the DNP program. Topics include i) professional expectations, ii) professional leadership activities, iii) goals to achieve, and iv) trends/changes in health care and health care delivery most likely to influence professional practice.

Professional expectations

As for professional expectations, foremost, I plan to continue working at my current place of employment as a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). As such, I further expect to experience professional development and the growing respect of my peers and colleagues. I also expect to be highly motivated and satisfied with my work as a DNP. In sum, after many years of gaining education and work experience, I believe I am entering the most rewarding stage of my professional career as a nurse.

Professional leadership activities. Once again, I consider the volunteer work I do at a battered women’s shelter as a type of professional leadership activity. As a DNP at Rolla Family Clinic, I also anticipate having new opportunities as a professional leader. FNP and other subordinates will, in fact, look to me for guidance and direction. Summarily, I expect that my professional leadership activities will be a regular part of my daily routine at Rolla Family Clinic in Rolla, Missouri.

Goals to Achieve

As for goals to achieve, I would like to continue bringing Early Childhood Caries (ECC) to the forefront in healthcare. The subject is not adequately addressed by medical health care providers. Also, my Capstone Project was centered on the promotion of better dental health for children by primary care providers. I would, therefore, enjoy the opportunity to utilize my knowledge and skills in this area.

Trends/changes in health care and health care delivery most likely to influence professional practice

As already mentioned above, health care delivery is changing rapidly. Alongside phenomena like changing policy frameworks, new medical practices and treatments, and the advent of the latest medical technology, the nursing profession is literally being redefined. In recognition of these facts, the IOM has outlined eight recommendations for appropriately transforming the nursing profession. The eight IOM recommendations sum up the types of changes in health care and health care delivery that are most likely to influence professional practice. Over the next three years, I anticipate being affected by each of the IOM recommendations in different ways.

IOM recommendation one calls for the removal of scope-of-practice barriers (IOM, n.d.). The administrative goal of IOM recommendation one is to promote a work environment that allows nurses to fully exercise their knowledge, skills, and talents. I anticipate that the trend will continue in the health care industry to this effect. In other words, institutions like the Rolla Family Clinic will provide nurses with significant opportunities for professional training education and career advancement. In this way, I also anticipate experiencing new degrees of self-actualization in the coming years.

IOM recommendation two calls for significant changes in the role of nurses in relation to collaboration and teamwork with physicians and other medical professionals (IOM, n.d.). As an anticipated trend, nurses will need to take on greater responsibilities as researchers, practitioners, leaders, and more. As part of my non-faculty career plan, I should, therefore, expect the same at Rolla Family Clinic.

IOM recommendation three articulates the goal of providing nurses with gainful employment opportunities after completing advanced degrees, education, and/or training (IOM, n.d.). A trend towards improved governmental support for these objectives should emerge. Health care delivery institutions will continue developing new approaches to job creation, staffing, and other related HR functions. As a DNP, in the next few years, I anticipate being involved in the creation, implementation, and support of related policies and programs.

IOM recommendations four and five call for more nurses in the health care delivery system with higher professional qualifications (IOM, n.d.). As the main leg of the strategy, policymakers want institutions in the health care delivery system to employ more nurses with baccalaureate degrees, master degrees, and doctorates. A trend in this direction will create change pressures and stress on organizations. Health care delivery institutions will need to improve support for the education and learning needs of nurses. As a DNP, I expect these trends to impact my work in terms of both job responsibilities and practice.

IOM recommendation six expresses the need for nurses to commit themselves to lifelong learning (IOM, n.d.). Similarly, IOM recommendation seven calls for nurses to be champions of change. As an emerging trend, nurses will increasingly be expected to fulfill leadership roles in health care delivery institutions. However, the diverse and complex challenges of the health care delivery environment require special leadership. In this respect, I expect to have many opportunities in the coming years to exercise my goal of becoming a transformational leader.

Finally, IOM recommendation eight calls for the building of an information system infrastructure to support the management of the professional health care workforce (IOM, n.d.). With the emerging trend, nurses should expect to be held accountable to new data collection and analysis requirements. My career plan should, therefore, be based on the expectation that I will need to be prepared to learn new data policies, procedures, and practices. Again, a commitment to lifelong learning must be recognized as perhaps the most essential element of career development.

References

City-Town Info. (2014). Rolla, Missouri. Retrieved from <http://www.citytowninfo.com/places/missouri/rolla

IOM-¬Institute of Medicine. (n.d.). The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health Report Recommendations. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

LaSala, C.A. & Bjarnason, D., (2010 Sept. 30) Creating Workplace Environments that Support Moral Courage. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 15(3), Manuscript 4.

Mizzou Sinclair School of Nursing. (2013 October 11). Doctor of Nursing Practice. Retrieved from <http://www.nursing.missouri.edu/academics/dnp/index.php

Rolla Family Clinic. (2010). About Us, Testimonials. Retrieved from <http://rollaurgentcare.com

Sherman, R.O. (2012). What Followers Want in Their Nurse Leaders. Am Nurs Today, 7(9).

Thomas, A.C., Crabtree, M.K., Delaney, K.R., Dumas, M.A., Kleinpell, R., Logsdon, M.C., Marfell, J. & Nativio, D.G. (2012). Nurse Practitioner Core Competencies-Amended 2012. The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Facilities. Retrieved from <http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.nonpf.org/resource/resmgr/competencies/npcorecompetenciesfinal2012.pdf