Describing the leadership capabilities of advanced practice nurses using a qualitative descriptive study

Nurses’ scope of practice is one of the most important healthcare service delivery issues. The scope of practice affects clinical practice through the kind of healthcare services delivered to patients. As a system of care delivery, there is a popular belief among healthcare providers that the patient needs and interests are best realized and served through many types of qualified professionals. Access, availability, and working together collaboratively are only possible through expanding the scope of practice. There is the relevance of using the scope of practice to help achieve access, availability, success, and better patient health outcomes.

Protecting and advancing the scope of practice to help in service delivery has been an issue over the year. The topic has gained popularity since the recent pandemic when most nurses were obliged to take up more roles because of the challenges of services experienced during the period (Goldsberry, 2018). Aspects of the staff shortages proved the intention of advancing the scope of practice for nurses for the sake of patients. Additionally, the healthcare industry is becoming versatile with the presence of technology, demanding healthcare consumers, and the increasing emergence of infectious diseases. These aspects make it relevant for nurses to advance their scope of practice so that they fully practice the skills gained in school based on their talented abilities. It is only relevant that nurses get the opportunity to fully practice based on their education and abilities to conquer the arising healthcare challenges.

There is a growing body of professionals working on an effective policy and a body of executive research that could help implement an advanced scope of practice where all barriers limiting nurses from practicing in their full education and abilities are easily eliminated (Lamb et al., 2018). The basis for these researches is anchored on the need to achieve efficiency and quality care for all healthcare patients. Below are some of the stakeholders involved in the proposition of eliminating barriers to advancing nurses’ scope of practice.

The American Nurses Association and associated groups

The American Nurses Association (ANA) is a nurse’s association advocating for the nurse’s interests and the nurses’ benefits. The association developed a coalition for patients’ and nurses’ rights to improve patient access to healthcare provision. Both organizations advocate for licensing for the sake of regulation but not the scope of practice (Goldsberry, 2018). The analysis illustrates that the scope of practice limits the benefit that the healthcare system can access to healthcare. Since the ANA represents the interest of the nurses and the patients, it is accurate to recognize that nurses as stakeholders also demand the expansion of the scope of clinical practice for nurses.

The government and affiliate groups

The three government and regulatory agencies have a similar opinion on the issue. The executive and the legislature believe that nursing deals with human life, thereby necessitating regulation of the professional industry. Regulatory agencies like the CDC and the AHRQ also analyze that the scope of practice is important to regulate because of a complex workforce with different professionals accorded different roles and responsibilities (Goldsberry, 2018). Limiting the scope of practice for nurses is the one-way government can regulate the sector. As stakeholders, it will take a lot of advocacy efforts for the government to realize the necessity of advancing the scope of practice within the healthcare system. However, through continuous advocacy, there is a chance of advancing professional scaling for nurses within the healthcare sector.

In conclusion, the healthcare advancement of the scope of practice for nurses is a practice issue that can better the healthcare system. Patients, the government, nurses, and other provider groups have explained different opinions regarding the issue. The advancement of the scope of practice boosts the healthcare system.

References

Goldsberry, J. W. (2018). Advanced practice nurses leading the way: Interprofessional collaboration. Nurse education today, 65, 1-3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0260691718300960 .

Lamb, A., Martin‐Misener, R., Bryant‐Lukosius, D., & Latimer, M. (2018). Describing the leadership capabilities of advanced practice nurses using a qualitative descriptive study. Nursing Open, 5(3), 400-413. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/nop2.150 .

Scroll to Top