Nurse program

Professional Nursing Organization and Certification:

Guidelines

Purpose

The purpose of this assignment is to investigate a professional nursing organization that offers certification in an area of clinical or nonclinical expertise. You are to select a professional nursing organization and determine if it offers a certification that will be of benefit to you in your current position or a future position to which you aspire. The organization and certification may be in either a clinical or nonclinical area; however, leadership development opportunities are important.

For example, you may aspire to be a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). Or, you may be currently interested in becoming a Certified Wound Care Specialist, Emergency Department Nurse or Medical-Surgical Nurse. Other organizations may be considered on a case-by-case basis AFTER approval from your instructor. An example would be if you want to become a CDE (Certified Diabetes Educator). This certification is sponsored by the American Association of Diabetes Educators which is not exclusively a nursing organization. Or, becoming certified as an IBCLC may be of interest to RNs working in Mother-Baby Departments and is sponsored by the International Lactation Consultant Association.

If you have any questions about whether the organization or the certification is a “fit” for this assignment, contact your instructor.

You will complete the form provided in Doc Sharing carefully providing all the information requested.

Course Outcomes

This assignment enables you to meet the following course outcome(s).

CO 1: Apply leadership concepts, skills, and decision making in the provision of high quality nursing care, healthcare team management, and the oversight and accountability for care delivery in a variety of settings. (PO #2)

CO 6: Develop a personal awareness of complex organizational systems and integrate values and beliefs with organizational mission. (PO #7)

CO 8: Apply concepts of quality and safety using structure, process, and outcome measures to identify clinical questions as the beginning process of changing current practice. (PO #8)

Directions

• Review the following (or similar) website and selects a professional nursing organization offering a certification of interest to you in your current position or one to which you aspire. www.nurse.org/orgs.shtml

• Thoughtfully and completely answer the questions on the form.

• BTLS, ACLS, ATLS, NALS, PALS and other similar certifications do NOT qualify for this assignment. Again, if you have any questions about the organization or the certification, contact your instructor for clarification.

• All work must be original (in your own words), with the exception of the organization’s mission, vision, and value statements, which may be copied verbatim from the website. Remember, any direct quotes must be in quotation marks including these elements.

Grading Criteria

Category

Points

%

Description

Description of professional organization

40

18%

Names organization and describes the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Indicates membership eligibility criteria and yearly financial implications of membership.

Workable link to organization’s website is included for faculty review.

Certification requirements

30

13%

Describes criteria for initial certification including education, testing, required practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

Recertification requirements

30

13%

Describes criteria for recertification including education, testing, practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

Practice impact

50

22%

Describes how membership (participation in the organization’s activities) will benefit your nursing practice, improve patient outcomes, enhance quality, safety, etc.

Certification impact

50

22%

Describes how certification and recertification will benefit your nursing practice, improve patient outcomes, enhance quality, safety, etc.

Scholarly writing and formatting

25

12%

• Date, name of the student and instructor appears on the form.

• Punctuation and sentence structure are correct.

• Evidence of spell and grammar check.

• With the exception of the organization’s mission, vision, and value statements, which must be in quotation marks, all work must be original (in the student’s own words). 

Total

225 points

100%

A quality assignment will meet or exceed all of the above requirements.

Grading Rubric

Assignment Criteria

A

Outstanding or Highest Level of Performance

B

Very Good or High Level of Performance

C

Competent or Satisfactory Level of Performance

F

Poor or Failing or Unsatisfactory Level of Performance

Description of professional organization

40 points

Thoroughly describes organization’s mission, vision, and values, indicating membership eligibility criteria and yearly financial implications of membership.

Working link to organization’s website is included for faculty review.

37–40 points

Clearly describes the organization’s mission, vision, and values, indicating membership eligibility criteria. Omits financial implications of membership.

Working link to organization’s website is included for faculty review.

34–36 points

Briefly describes the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Omits membership eligibility criteria and yearly financial implications of membership.

Working link to organization’s website is not included for faculty review.

31–35 points

Does not describe the organization’s mission, vision, and values. Omits other key information.

Working link to organization’s website is not included for faculty review.

0–30 points

Certification requirements

30 points

Thoroughly describes criteria for initial certification including education, testing, required practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

28–30 points

Clearly describes criteria for initial certification but omits one of the following: education, testing, required practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

26–27 points

Briefly describes criteria for initial certification but omits two or three of the following: education, testing, required practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

23–25 points

Does not describe criteria for initial certification.

0–22 points

Recertification requirements

30 points

Thoroughly describes criteria for recertification including education, testing, practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

28–30 points

Clearly describes criteria for recertification but omits one of the following: education, testing, practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

26–27 points

Briefly describes criteria for recertification but omits two or three of the following: education, testing, practice hours (if applicable), fees etc.

23–25 points

Does not describe criteria for recertification.

0–22 points

Practice impact

50 points

Thoroughly describes how membership (participation in the organization’s activities) will benefit your nursing practice, improve patient outcomes, enhance quality, safety, etc.

46–50 points

Clearly describes how membership (participation in the organization’s activities) will benefit your nursing practice but does not mention improvement of patient outcomes OR enhanced quality, safety, etc.

42–45 points

Briefly describes how membership (participation in the organization’s activities) will benefit your nursing practice but does not mention improvement of patient outcomes AND enhanced quality, safety, etc.

38–41 points

Does not describe how membership (participation in organization’s activities) will benefit patient care.

0–37 points

Certification impact

50 points

Thoroughly describes how certification and recertification will benefit your nursing practice, improve patient outcomes, enhance quality, safety, etc.

46–50 points

Clearly describes how certification and recertification will benefit your nursing practice but does not mention improvement of patient outcomes OR enhanced quality, safety, etc.

42–45 points

Briefly describes how certification and recertification will benefit your nursing practice but does not mention improvement of patient outcomes AND enhanced quality, safety, etc.

38–41 points

Does not describe how certification and recertification will benefit patient care.

0–37 points

Scholarly writing and formatting

25 points

Date, name of the student and instructor appears on form.

No punctuation or sentence structure errors are noted.

No spelling or grammar errors noted.

Mission, vision, and values statement, if directly quoted, are in quotation marks. Other information is paraphrased in student’s words.

23–25 points

Date or name of the student or instructor is missing

One-two punctuation and/or sentence structure errors noted.

One-two spelling or grammar errors noted.

Mission, vision, and values statement, if quoted directly, are in quotation marks. Other information partially paraphrased in student’s words.

21–22 points

Date and name of the student or instructor are missing.

Three-four punctuation and/or sentence structure errors noted.

Three-four spelling or grammar errors noted.

Direct quotes are attributed but not in quotation marks.

19–20 points

No student identification.

Multiple typos.

Multiple grammar and punctuation errors noted.

No evidence of proof-reading prior to submitting assignment. Mission, vision, and values statement, if directly quoted, are not in direct quotes, and other information mostly or totally copied from the website.

0–18 points

Total possible points = 225

Your score=

A quality assignment will meet or exceed all of the above requirements.