Answer

Pursuit of the DNP

Why I have pursued the DNP degree

                Nurses are acknowledged as the most important professionals in the healthcare industry owing to their role in patient care. Critical to the discussion is the fact that the nursing profession is diverse implying practitioners in the profession could specialize in different fields. For instance, nurses could mold their careers into leaders by taking a doctor of nursing practice degree. I personally intend to pursue the degree because the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2015) reveals that the nursing profession is changing. Specifically, the author asserts that the profession requires the highest level of practice expertise and scientific knowledge to ascertain quality patient outcomes. In fact, most nursing organizations advocate re-conceptualizing educational programs that produce healthcare professionals. In short, I want to pursue the DPN degree because of the changing trends that require advanced expertise and knowledge in the nursing profession.

                 I also realize that the number of nurses who are pursuing the degree in question is rapidly increasing. As evidence, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2015) reveals that the number of students who enroll for the degree increased from 14,688 in 2013 to 18,352 in 2014 (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2015). This indicates that the industry is need of highly qualified professionals in the field and many professionals are responding to the requirement by enrolling for advanced education. Considering my skills, passion and abilities, I wish to pursue further education in order to be a competent practitioner. Specifically, I acknowledge that I am passionate about nursing practice than nursing research and education. Vital to the debate is the fact that alternative doctoral programs in nursing prepare students for educational and research careers. As a result, I am left with the option of pursuing DNP because I want to practice nursing.

                The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2008) prepared essential guidelines for the DNP program. It is critical that the guidelines could be used to identify how the DNP program prepares learners. For instance, the guidelines indicate that students who pursue the program could chose to specialize in systems thinking and quality improvement, scientific underpinnings for practice, health care policy for advocacy in healthcare, and information systems among others.  Personally, I wish to specialize in health care policy for advocacy in healthcare because my abilities and passion match the program. Specifically, the program will prepare me on health policy proposals, implementing health policy proposals, influence policy makers, advocate for social justice, provide leadership in healthcare policy, and educate other on matters regarding health care policy (Nichols, Connor, and Dunn 2012). Simply put, the program will not only train me on healthcare policy, but will also develop my leadership skills in the field.

                I believe that the doctor of practice in nursing program is an equivalent of a doctor of philosophy in the nursing profession. Nonetheless, physicians and non-physicians will address me differently because of their different perceptions of the program. It is important to note that the title doctor emerged as a title given to people who have achieved the highest educational level and were entitled to be teachers. This explains why the industry is slow to accept that DNP graduates should be called doctors. This owes to the reality that States such as Ohio and Illinois prohibit nurses with doctoral certifications from using the title doctor. On the contrary, most of the States in America allow DNP nurses to use the title doctor before their names. However, I will have to include the title of licensure or specialty after the title doctor. For instance, I could use a title such as Doctor of Physical therapy.

Ideal Position

                It is important to highlight that the doctor of practice in nursing aims at reducing the gap between research and practice. As evidence, Vincent, Johnson, Velasquez, and Rigney (n.d) argue that national leaders have advocated for the transformation of the American health care system citing the need to reduce the gap between research and practice. This owes to the reality that the authors posit that transforming the healthcare system calls for clinicians who understand both research and practice. In fact, the program in question was developed with an aim improving evidence-based practice in healthcare. In support, Vincent et al., (n.d) argue that the American Association of Colleges of Nurses published a DNP statement arguing that the program could improve evidence-based practice in the American healthcare industry. In short, the doctor of nursing in practice was developed with an aim of reducing the gap between research and practice.

                It is clear that the DNP program intends to improve evidence-based practice in the Healthcare industry. It follows that pursuing the program will equip me with the required skills to understand research and implement findings from research into practice. Consequently, I will be able to reduce the cost of healthcare by implementing topical recommendations from published studies. In simple terms, the program will enable me to understand both research and practice, which will in turn improve my ability to lower the cost of healthcare services (Trepaniear, Early, Ulrich, and Cherry, 2012). Critical to the debate is the fact that the program will not only enable me to lower the cost of healthcare, but also improve the quality of services in the industry. This owes to the reality that the program will equip with skills to understand findings from studies, which will improve my ability to offer quality services to the society.

                It is evident that the program in question equips graduates with an ability to promote evidence-based practice. It follows that the new role will help contribute to the changing practice among clinicians. As evidence, Alison (2015) argues that clinicians with DNP certifications should not only implement evidence-based practice, but also advocate for evidence–based practice in the industry. Imperative to the debate is the reality that the program prepares students to take on leadership positions at their work place. Further, the program prepares leaners by equipping them with skills that allow them to advocate for policy changes. Consequently, I will use the leadership skills earned from the program to seek leadership positions in nursing associations. From such positions, I will advocate for evidence-based practice in the nursing profession. Therefore, my new role will contribute to changing practice to the clinical realm by enabling me to take on leadership positions in nursing organizations and advocating for evidence-based practice.

                It is important to note that the new role will not only equip me with an ability to advocate for evidence-based practice, but also advocate for policy changes. This owes to the reality that the essentials provided by the American Association of Colleges of Nurses (2008) require that DNP graduates be prepared for health care policy for advocacy in health care. Specifically, the essentials prepare students for policy development, taking on leadership positions educating others on matter of policy, evaluation of policies, advocating for social justice ethical policies and equity. This implies that through leadership positions earned by virtue of qualification, I will push for policies that would greatly benefit the society.

Skills and Knowledge

                According to In Zaccagnini and In White (2014), the DNP program prepares nurses to take on leadership positions, which implies that DNP nurses should portray exceptional leadership skills. As a result, I will portray skills that a nurse executive with his or her MSN or MBA may not be able to portray. For instance, I will be able to develop effective strategies that manage ethical problems essential to patient care, research, and healthcare organizations. Further, I will be able to ascertain accountability for patient safety and the quality of care at my workplace. In doing so, I will be able to use intricate communication skills for leadership on patient safety and quality improvement initiatives. Further, I will portray principles from finance, health policy, economics, and business to implement effective plans that would benefit the healthcare industry. It is also notable that I will portray skills for developing and evaluating delivery approaches with an aim of meeting current and future needs of patients. 

                As mentioned earlier, I intend to become a nurse politician by specializing in health care policy for advocacy in healthcare. It follows that I should be able to analyze health policies proposals critically. It is notable that the aforementioned skills is different from skills portrayed by nurses with MSN or MPH qualifications  because such nurses may not have the capacity of making such evaluations. As evidence, Campaign for Action (2015) reveals that such nurses are equipped with the capacity to lead collaboration among communities, address social determinants of health, influence policy, improve population health, and respond to emerging trends. This indicates that an ability to advocate for equity, social justice, and ethical policies is also an exceptional skill, which MSN and MPH nurses have not acquired through training (Moran, Burson, and Conrad, 2014).

Recommendations for Transforming the Future

                It is crucial to highlight that the Institute of Medicine (2011) identified eight recommendations for transforming the future of nursing. One such recommendation advocates for preparing nurses to lead change by advancing health. Consequently, the recommendations assert that nursing organizations should provide mentoring programs, leadership development, and opportunities to lead other members. The recommendation also proposes integration of business practices and leadership theory in both clinical practice and educational programs. Further, the recommendation also requires that nurses develop their professional and personal growth by continuing their education and seeking opportunities that would allow them to exercise and develop their leadership skills. Ultimately, the recommendation requires that all decision makers in the nursing industry include members from nursing boards in their leadership positions and other executive management teams.

                It could be deduced that preparing nurses to lead change by advancing health resonates with my ideal position as a nurse politician. It follows that, as a DNP prepared nurse, and especially as nurse politician, I am obligated to support the recommendations. This owes to the truth that the DNP program will equip me with the capacity of taking leadership positions within nursing organizations, which is rudimental in pushing for the recommendations. As evidence, Chism (2010) argues that nurse leaders are best suited for transforming the healthcare industry because they could use their leadership positions to transform the industry. It is also notable that the DNP program will develop by capacity to demonstrate leadership in implementing and developing federal, local, State and international policies. As a result, I will be best suited to pursue the program because it would not only benefit me, but also the society tremendously.

                Another recommendation proposed by the Institute of Medicine (2011) that resonates with my ideal position is recommendation number four. Specifically, the recommendation advocates for the increase in the proportion of nurses who have baccalaureate degrees roe eighty percent by 2020. For instance, the recommendation requires that all nursing schools offer defined academic pathways to promote nurses’ access to higher education. Further, the recommendation advocates for the provision of professional cultures that allow nurses with diploma and associate degrees to pursue baccalaureate nursing education within five years of graduation. The same recommendation promotes funding for nurses who pursue baccalaureate education through loan forgiveness, offering scholarships, and using technology to instruct. Ultimately, the recommendation advocates for recruiting and advancing a diverse team of nursing students.

                 It is important to note that pursing a DNP program would put me in a position to push for the implementation of the fourth recommendation proposed by the Institute of Medicine (2011).  This owes to the reality that the program will help to understand the benefits of further education, which would in turn urge me to fight for the same benefits to the society and fellow nurses. Further, pursuing baccalaureate nursing programs will equip nurses with the required skills for evidence-based practice. This is important to the profession because it would improve the quality of services in the nursing profession (McCaffrey, 2012). Therefore, just like the previous recommendation, I believe I will have a crucial role to play in transforming the healthcare industry. In particular, my role as a nurse politician should enable me to influence non-professional policy makers on the need to implement the recommendation in question.

Conclusion

                In conclusion, this paper discusses the changes and the need to pursue a DNP program, describes an individual ideal position, skills from the program that would help me benefit the society, and how I could use the program to push for recommendations from the Institute of Medicine (2011). For instance, it is evident that the doctor of practice in medicine equips learners with the required skills for the otherwise changing and demanding trends of the healthcare profession. Further, it is clear that most States in America allow non-physician practitioners to use the title doctor together with their field of specialty. It follows that using the title may be legal or legal depending on the State of practice. Imperative to the debate is the fact that I wish to specialize in in health care policy for advocacy in healthcare because the specialty complements my abilities and passion.

                It is important to note that pursuing a doctor of nursing degree would also benefit the society and the healthcare industry owing to the skills it provides to graduates. For instance, the new role will equip me with skills that promote evidence-based care, which in turn helps in cutting costs, improving the quality and access to health care services. Additionally, the program equips leaners with an ability to evaluate and implement policy proposals by building the leaner’s leadership skills. As a result, the program develops leaners into leaders in the industry. Vital to the debate is the fact that the program will equip me with skills exceptional from nurses with MSN, MBA, or MPH qualifications. Above all, the program will enable me to implement the Institute of Medicine (2011) recommendations, which intend to transform the health care industry.