DNP Role: Educator

Amy Seitz Cooley, MS, RN, ACNS-BC York College of Pennsylvania DNP Student

Objectives

§ Discuss the background and vision for the DNP role §  Identify the competencies of the nurse educator § Discuss the “Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced

Nursing practice” specifically related to the DNP as an educator

§ Describe the DNP role in education in the health care organization and in academia

Background § Changing demands of the national healthcare environment

requires the highest level of scientific knowledge and practice expertise to assure quality patient outcomes

§ The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) position statement on the Practice Doctorate in Nursing recommended that advanced nursing practice education be at the doctoral level (AACN, 2004)

§ Advanced nursing practice is defined as any nursing intervention that influences healthcare outcomes for individuals, or populations…directly or indirectly (AACN, 2015)

§ Advanced practice nurse include certified: nurse anesthetists, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, nurse midwives

Why the DNP? §  Institute of Medicine (IOM), The Joint Commission (TJC),

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF)—called for educational programs to prepare today’s health professionals § Rapid expansion of knowledge underlying practice §  Increased complexity of patient care § National focus on quality of care and patient safety §  Shortages of nursing personnel—leaders must be prepared for

designing and assessing care §  Shortages of doctorally prepared nursing faculty §  Increasing educational expectations for preparations of other

disciplines in healthcare (pharmacy, dentistry, physical therapy) § National Academy of Sciences called for nursing to develop a

non-research clinical doctorate—prepare expert clinicians who can serve as clinical faculty

(AACN, 2014)

Benefits of practice focused doctoral programs… § Development of needed advanced competencies for

increasingly complex practice, faculty, leadership roles § Enhanced knowledge to improve nursing practice and patient

outcomes § Enhanced leadership skills to strengthen practice and health

care delivery § Better match of program requirements, credigs and time with

credential earned § Provision of advanced educational credential for those who

require advanced practice knowledge but do not want strong research focus: practice faculty

§ Enhance ability to attract individuals to nursing from non-nursing background

§  Increased supply of faculty for practice (AACN, 2006)

Current DNP Program Stats

www.aacn.nche.edu (2014)

Role vs. Degree

The DNP is not a role…it is a degree!

(AACN, 2006; www.utc.edu)

DNP Essentials… § Scientific underpinnings for practice § Organizational and systems leadership for quality

improvement and systems thinking § Clinical scholarship and analytical methods for evidence-

based practice §  Information systems/technology and patient care technology

for the improvement and transformation of health care § Health care policy for advocacy in health care §  Interprofessional collaboration for improving patient and

population health outcomes § Clinical prevention and population health for improving the

nation’s health

(AACN, 2006)

(www.pinterest.com)

Nurse Educator defined… § Professionals who work in the

classroom and practice setting § Combine clinical expertise and

passion for teaching § Responsible for academic and

continuing education for nurses—formal and more informal programs

§ Prepared at master’s or doctoral levels

§ Practice as faculty in colleges, universities, hospital based schools of nursing

§ Practice as staff development educators in health care organizations

(www.nursesource.org)

(www.pinterest.com)

Nurse Educator responsibilities: § Design curricula § Develop courses and programs of study § Teach and guide learners § Evaluate learning § Document educational outcomes § Help students identify learning needs, strengths, limitations

(www.nursesourse.org/nurse_educator.html)

Additional responsibilities: § Advise students § Engage in scholarly work (research) § Participate in professional organizations § Speak or present at nursing conerences § Contribute to the academic community through leadership roles § Engage in peer review § Maintain clinical competence § Participate in grant writing

(www.nursesourse.org/nurse_educator.html)

Qualifications: § Excellent communication skills § Creative, flexible, and innovative § Clinical experience and knowledge base in area of instruction § Critical thinking skills § Knowledge base re: theories of teaching, learning and

evaluation § Knowledge of curriculum design § Anticipate changes and expectations (clinical setting and

academic setting) § Advising and counseling skills § Research and scholarly skills

(www.nursesourse.org/nurse_educator.html)

Nurse Educators as Leaders § Leadership is an essential element in the nurse educator role § Organizational success depends on the competency of its

leaders § American Organization for Nurse Executives (AONE) and

National League for Nursing (NLN) have identified competencies specific for nurse executives and nurse educators

§ NLN’s Excellence in Nursing Education Model (NLN, 2006) §  8 core elements in nursing education needed to achieve excellence

(Patterson & Krouse, 2015)

NLN’s Excellence in Nursing Education Model (NLN, 2006)

How will DNP graduates be prepared to assume the nurse educator role? § Discipline of education--separate body of knowledge and competence

(AACN, 2004) § Recommendation 12: AACN Position Statement on the Practice

Doctorate in Nursing: §  Practice doctorate programs, as in research focused doctoral programs

are encouraged to offer additional coursework and practica that would prepare graduates to fill the role of nurse educator (AACN, 2004)

§ Leadership education to develop leaders in health care—developing experts in nursing practice (Falk et al, 2015)

Benefits of DNP educator in Academia

(online.nursing.georgetown.edu)

Benefits § Expertise and competence in clinical setting § Theoretical, practical knowledge § Experience with evidence based practice

§  Search for evidence §  Evaluate evidence §  Translate evidence §  Disseminate evidence

§ Nursing leaders: leadership experience as advanced practice nurse; leadership education in DNP program (Falk et al., 2015)

§ Excellent resource: translators and mediators between nursing education and nursing practice §  DNP faculty add dimension and breadth to the theoretical fundamentals and clinical

experiences within core nursing education programs § Role model for future nurses

( Danzey et al, 2011; Gatti-Petito et al., 2013 Penz & Bassendowski, 2006)

Article Discussion # 1 § Clinical scholarship and adult learning theory: A role for the DNP in

nursing education §  Gatti-Petito et al., 2013

Main points: § The importance of theory

§  Knowles §  Gagné §  5 major types of learning levels

§  Keller §  ARCS model of motivational design

§ Case examples—provide examples of so students can connect to previous knowledge

§ DNP offers a “broad lens to teach new nurses dynamic concepts of care to meet complex care issues…” (p. 275)

Article Discussion # 2: § The doctor of nursing practice and nursing education:

Highlights, potential, and promise § Danzey et al., 2011

Main points: § The faculty shortage § DNP and nursing education § DNP and scholarship

§  Boyer’s model of scholarship: §  Scholarship of discovery (generation of new knowledge) §  Scholarship of teaching §  Scholarship of practice-**Scholarship of application §  Scholarship of integration (interdisciplinary)

Benefits of DNP prepared educator in the health care organization

(www.nursinglicensemap.com)

Benefits § Expertise in EBP

§ Higher quality and reliability in health care §  Improved population health § Reduced costs—triple aim

§ Help to over come barriers of translation of evidence into practice, specifically the barriers of inadequate knowledge and skills in EBP by clinicians, lack of EBP mentors and facilitators

§ DNP prepared APN is fully prepared to engage in organizational evaluation and change

§ DNP prepared APN’s understanding of organizational and health systems facilitates capacity to be a change agent

(Danzey et al., 2011; Melnyk et al., 2016)

Case example and Article # 3 WellSpan Research and Innovation Council § Used Melnyk’s Organizational Culture and Readiness for

System-Wide Integration of EBP § Survey to all WellSpan nurses and nurse leaders, support

disciplines such as respiratory therapy and rehabilitation medicine

§ Currently evaluating the results and getting action plan together to address the opportunities found: §  Leadership support §  Process for EBP in a large organization § Return on investment for time and $$ spent: improved outcomes

for nursing sensitive indicators, population management outcomes, and patient experience

(Melnyk et al., 2016)

In Summary…Ponder this…

§ https://youtu.be/_kCKcnuUx8E

????Questions???? § Once you earn your DNP degree, how will you fulfill the

educator role in your work as an APN? § Who are the EBP mentors to other nursing staff in your

workplace? § How do you foresee your DNP degree helping you

influentially educate nursing leaders and colleagues—what aspects of your DNP program do you think will be most helpful?

References § American Association Of Colleges Of Nursing. (2004,

October). AACN position statement on the practice doctorate in nursing. Retrieved April 1, 2014, from http://www.aacn.nche.edu

§ American Association Of Colleges Of Nursing. (2006, October). The essentials of doctoral education for advanced nursing practice. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://aacn.nche.edu/dnp/essentials.pdf

§ American Association Of Colleges Of Nursing. (2012, May). Doctor of nursing practice (DNP) programs frequently asked question. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://www.aacn.nche.edu

§ American Association Of Colleges Of Nursing. (2014, January). The doctor of nursing practice (DNP) fact sheet. Retrieved April 17, 2014, from http://www.aacn.nche.edu/media-relations/fact-sheets/dnp

References § American Association Of Colleges Of Nursing. (2015,

August). The doctor of nursing practice current issues and clarifying recommendations. Retrieved from http://www.aacn.nche.edu

§ Danzey, I. M., Ea, E., Fitzpatrick, J. J., Garbutt, S. J., Rafferty, M., & Zychowicz, M. E. (2011). The doctor of nursing practice and nursing education: Highlights, potential, and promise. Journal of Professional Nursing, 27, 311-314. doi:10.1016/jprofnurs.2011.06.008

§ Falk, N. L., Garrison, K. F., Brown, M. M., Pintz, C., & Bocchino, J. (2015). Strategic planning and doctor of nursing practice education: Developing today's and tomorrow's leaders. Nursing Economics, 33, 246-254.

§ Gatti-Petito, J., Lakatos, B. E., Bradley, H. B., Cook, L., Haight, I. E., & Karl, C. A. (2013). Clinical scholarship and adult learning theory: A role for the DNP in nursing education. Nursing Education Perspectives, 34, 273-276.

References § Melnyk, B. M., Gallagher-Ford, L., Troseth, M., & Szalacha, L.

(2016). A study of chief nurse executives indicates low prioritization of evidence-based practice and shortcomings in hospital performance metrics across the United States. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 0, 1-9. doi:10.1111/wvn.12133

§ National League For Nursing. (2006, November). Excellence model. Retrieved February 8, 2016, from http://nln.org

§ Nurses For A Healthier Tomorrow. (2015). Nurse educator. Retrieved February 5, 2016, from http://www.nursesource.org/nurse_educator.html

§ Patterson, B. J., & Krouse, A. M. (2015). Competencies for leaders in nursing education. Nursing Education Perspectives, 36, 76-82. doi:10.5480/13-1300

§ Penz, K. L., & Bassendowski, S. L. (2006). Evidence-based nursing in clinical practice: Implications for nurse educators. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 37, 250254.

References § White, K. W. (2014). Emerging roles for the DNP. In M. E.

Zaccagnini & K. W. White (Eds.), The Doctor of Nursing Practice Essentials (2nd ed., pp. 355-413). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.