Capstone Research Companion

Week 10: Capstone Companion

Professional Development and Certification

Professional nursing organizations abound, with many catering to nurses in leadership positions, offering certifications, trainings, and networking opportunities. Due to their positions, nurse executives may feel somewhat isolated in their workplace. It can be helpful to join a professional organization, where people in similar roles can gather collectively to gain support, discuss new policies or initiatives, and work through problems. There is also power in such a group—power to effect real change.

How might membership in a nursing organization or professional certification help you as a nurse executive?

Throughout this course, you have been pursuing the professional development objectives you established for your practicum. This week, you examine your overarching goals beyond this practicum and consider how involvement in professional associations could benefit your development as a nurse executive. In addition, you assess how certification could contribute to your professional standing. Additionally, you complete and record all of your practicum hours this week via your Meditrek time log. Finally, you submit your Professional Portfolio by the end of the week.

Learning Objectives

Students will

· Analyze the purpose of obtaining certifications to support professional goals

· Evaluate personal readiness for achieving practice certification

· Evaluate evidence that demonstrates professional growth for inclusion in a Professional Portfolio

· Assess changes in personal and professional goals and roles as a result of graduate nursing education.

Learning Resources

Echevarria, I. M. (2018). Make Connections by joining a professional nursing organization. Nursing, 48(12), 35-38.

Smith, C. M., & Johnson, C. S. (2018, May/June). Preparing nurse leaders in nursing professional development Leadership programs. Journal for Nurses Professional Development, 34(3), 158-161. https://doi.org/10.1097/NND.0000000000434.

Walden University Career Services. (n.d.-b). Resumes and More & more. https://academicguides.walden.edu/careerservicescenter/resumesandmore.

Organizations and Certification. http://www.aacn.org/wd/certications/content/Cnmlhome:PCMS?Menu=Certification

American Nurses Association. (n.d.). Leadership and excellence. http://www.nursingworld.org/MainMenuCategories/ThePracticeofProfessional Nursing/Leadership.

American Nurses Credentialing Center. (n.d.). Nurse executive certification (NE-BC). https://www.nursingworld.org/our-certifications/nurse-executive/

American Organization for Nursing Leadership. (n.d.). AONL credentialing Center Certification programs. https://www.aonl.org/initiatives/certification.

NMA. (n.d.). Home.https://www.nmal.org/

Nurse.org.(n.d.). List of nursing Organizations. https://nurse.orgs.Shtml.

Project Management Institute. (n.d.). Certifications. https://www.pmi.org/certification/what-are-PMI-Certifications.aspx.

Document: Guide to Creating the Professional Portfolio (PDF).

Document: Professional Portfolio Template (Word document).

The Professional Portfolio

As you conclude your MSN program, you may look forward to advancing your career and assuming a nurse executive role. Drs. Lynn Parsons and Jeanne Morrison offer advice for approaching the Professional Portfolio and give examples of its use outside Walden in an interview setting. (4m).

The Transcript

The Professional Portfolio

Program Transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

FEMALE SPEAKER: The professional portfolio is important because it's not just

something that you're telling them or writing on a resume, but you're actually showing

documents that indicate what abilities you have.

Probably the biggest advice is to start early. You should have all the documents all

ready, except for a final reflection that's going to be needed and the outcome evidence

chart. But all of your that you already have them. So what you're doing is you're

assembling the portfolio.

But the reason I say to start early is because you're going to find you don't have one of

them. There are ways to retrieve these. And one of the biggest ways is probably student

services or an instructor that you had previously, but you have to give them time. Don't

wait until the end of the term and say, oh, I can't find this document.

FEMALE SPEAKER: The other part of the portfolio and the most important part, I think,

is the table of contents because that literally will list everything that's required in the

rubric. So if you follow your table of contents, you've got this. In the final portfolio beside

your table of contents, you're going to literally just share your curriculum vitae or your

resume.

You're going to list continuing educational units that you've achieved. And then you're

going to do an outcomes evidence chart. And that, for some reason, students get

anxious. Don't. There is a document within the course that we'll share with you what we

expect in the program outcome evidence chart.

The other thing is that you're going to write your final reflection. It's your final reflection.

It's what the Walden journey has been like for you in the nurse executive track. And

again, I get a lot of questions. What should I put in it? Should there be references? Only

if you want to have references. It's your final reflection. And there is a document within

the course that helps guide the students on what they could put in the final reflection.

FEMALE SPEAKER: The final portfolio can be used in an interview process. The

person that you're interviewing with can actually see the work that you have done, can

actually, look at what you have written down as your competencies and how these

assignments matched your competencies.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Emerging nurse executives have a breadth of accomplishments

that they've achieved. It would be impossible to try and bring all of them into an

interview setting. So the final portfolio is a document that the student can take with them

that shows the breadth of their work without literally listing for an interviewer everything

they've done.

So what I recommend to students is to take the final portfolio with you to your interview

and put it on the table. And as the interviewer asks questions, share some of the things

you've done. You can show them your work in the portfolio.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Make a copy of it. Leave it with them. And they will look at it,

especially if you're going for a nurse executive position. So it just shows you put a little

bit more work into it and that you're serious about the job.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Once you receive your MSN degree from Walden University with a

nurse executive credential, the sky's the limit. And you just don't have to be the chief

nurse officer. There's so many other things that nurse exec track students can do and

accomplish. If you want, you can go start your own business and run a home health

care program, work in a hospice. You can be the director of an education unit in a large

teaching research facility. The possibilities are just endless.

FEMALE SPEAKER: Now that it's the end of the practicum experience, I hope you

enjoyed yourself. Not only enjoyed yourself, but I hope that you learned a lot from this

experience. This is just the beginning for you. You're going out now. You're going to get

a job. And you're going to be wonderful leaders. So congratulations.

The Professional Portfolio

Content Attribution

AdobeStock_84236517

juli_lenets/Adobe Stock

AdobeStock_158978688

RFBSIP/Adobe Stock

AdobeStock_178453123_Video_HD

pixs4u/Adobe Stock

AdobeStock_190513127_Video_HD

Cavan/Adobe Stock

AdobeStock_232438359

terovesalainen/Adobe Stock

Discussion Part (3pages)

Professional Development and Certification

Consider the following scenario:

Maria recently earned certification in executive nursing practice from the American Organization for Nursing Leadership. She was especially proud of this accomplishment and was confident it would serve her well as she continued her career. At a conference last week, she had found herself talking with a colleague about certification.

Photo Credit: Monkey Business - stock.adobe.co

To her surprise, her colleague suggested that she look into the Project Management Institute. It had not occurred to Maria that she might need or want that type of certification, but upon further reflection, she could see how important it was to be able to manage projects effectively. She wondered how pursuing this type of certification might further her professional development and lead to new opportunities. At the very least, she decided it was worth exploring further.

Certifications like those Maria has pursued recognize an individual’s specialty area knowledge and skills and can lead to professional empowerment. By obtaining certifications, you can help improve your quality of practice and increase your earning potential.

1. In this Discussion, you consider development opportunities afforded through professional associations and examine how earning certifications can advance your career.

To prepare:

· Reflect on your professional goals. These goals may relate to the practicum professional development objectives you established in Week 2, but you are encouraged to take a broader view of what you would like to accomplish in the immediate future, as well as 5 or 15 years from now. Identify at least one goal that is especially important to you.

· Think about the benefits of becoming involved in professional organizations and obtaining certifications.

· If you already have a specialty or clinical certification, reflect on how this has impacted the achievement of your professional goals thus far.

· As a Walden graduate, consider how you will advance the role of scholar-practitioner in your daily practice and how certification may assist.

· Review information about two or more of the professional organizations listed in the Learning Resources. Consider the following questions:

· As you explore each organization’s website, review the mission, vision, and value statements. Also examine the strategic plan, if possible. How do these align with your interests and your professional goals?

· Investigate whether the organization offers networking opportunities with fellow professionals. Is there a local or regional chapter you could join?

· What are the potential benefits of obtaining a certification through each organization? Examine the criteria for certification.

· Evaluate your readiness and desire to become certified through each organization. What hesitations, if any, do you have?

· How and why might this certification be useful to you and/or enhance your professional development?

By Day 3

2. Post a description of one or more of your professional goals. Describe a certification provided by a professional organization that would be of interest to you. Explain how and why this additional certification would be useful to you and/or enhance your professional development and your role as a scholar-practitioner. Evaluate your readiness to obtain this certification, noting any reservations you may have.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.

By Day 6

Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days, using one or more of the following approaches:

· Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence, or research.

· Share an insight from having read your colleagues’ postings, synthesizing the information to provide new perspectives.

· Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.

3. Note: For this Discussion, you are required to complete your initial post before you will be able to view and respond to your colleagues’ postings. Begin by clicking on the "“Post to Discussion Question"” link and then select "“Create Thread"” to complete your initial post. Remember, once you click on Submit, you cannot delete or edit your own posts, and you cannot post anonymously. Please check your post carefully before clicking on Submit!

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 10 Discussion Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 6

To Participate in this Discussion: Week 10 Discussion

Assignment Part (5 pages)

Professional Portfolio

Throughout this course, you have been developing your Professional Portfolio, assembling evidence of your accomplishments in your program of study to generate a positive impression of your capabilities as a nurse executive.

It may be difficult to think back to how you felt at the beginning of your program or even what you accomplished in your earlier courses. Thankfully, your Portfolio provides a record—in the form of your submitted assignments—that you can use to show your growth and achievements. No doubt you have improved in confidence, knowledge of the discipline, and critical and analytical thinking, not to mention APA Style.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

Your Portfolio is not just a record of your academic development, though; it can be a useful tool for career advancement as you meet with potential employers.

1. While finalizing your Professional Portfolio, think about how you would like to use this “living” artifact as you proceed through the next phase of your career. With whom will you share it? How and when will you update it? How will you use it to help secure future work?

To prepare:

· Assemble the elements of your Portfolio using the Guide to Creating a Professional Portfolio and the Professional Portfolio Template in the Learning Resources. The portfolio includes: (a) Title page, (b) Table of Contents, (c) Curriculum Vitae (CV)/Résumé, (d) Required Portfolio Assignments (Core and Nurse Executive), (e) Continuing Education/courses if applicable, (f) End-of-Program Outcomes Evidence Chart (POEC), and (g) Final Reflection. The Final Reflection should reflect on work completed in this course and throughout your program of study in the nurse executive track, using the recommended format found in the Guide to Creating the Professional Portfolio.

· If the Track Changes function has been used in your document, accept the changes and turn the tracker off to ensure a clean and professional appearance.

· Reflect on your academic journey in the MSN nurse executive track, including the experiences, readings, or assignments that changed your perspective or significantly impacted your growth.

· Reflect on your strengths and improvement areas. How will you continue to advance your career with those in mind?

By Day 7

Submit your Professional Portfolio.

Submission and Grading Information

To submit your completed Assignment for review and grading, do the following:

Please save your Assignment using the naming convention “WK10Assgn+last name+first initial.(extension)” as the name.

Click the Week 10 Assignment Rubric to review the Grading Criteria for the Assignment.

Click the Week 10 Assignment link. You will also be able to “View Rubric” for grading criteria from this area.

Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK10Assgn+last name+first initial. (extension)” and click Open.

If applicable: From the Plagiarism Tools area, click the checkbox for I agree to submit my paper(s) to the Global Reference Database.

Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 10 Assignment Rubric

Check Your Assignment Draft for Authenticity

To check your Assignment draft for authenticity:

Submit your Week 10 Assignment draft and review the originality report.

Submit Your Assignment by Day 7

To participate in this Assignment: Week 10 Assignment

Practicum Time Log

Remember to consistently document your practicum hours in Meditrek using the following website:

HSoft Corporation. (n.d.). Meditrek. https://edu.meditrek.com/Default.html

All practicum hours must be completed and recorded this week.

Time Log