Nursing Educator as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse |NUR513|

Professional Nursing Organizations. There are multiple professional organizations geared towards educators. The organizations that I think are most influential for my goal as an educator and for all APRN’s are the National League for Nursing (NLN), the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), the Journal of Nursing Education (JNE), and the Journal of Nurse Education and Practice (JNEP). The NLN refers to themselves as the voice of nursing education. “Dedicated to excellence in nursing, the National League for Nursing is the premier organization for nurse faculty and leaders in nursing education. The NLN offers professional development, networking opportunities, testing services, nursing research grants, and public policy initiatives” (National League for Nursing, 2019). This organization is a good resource and offers a lot of teaching opportunities for nurse educators. According to the AACN, they are “the national voice for academic nursing. AACN works to establish quality standards for nursing education; assists schools in implementing those standards; influences the nursing profession to improve health care; and promotes public support for professional nursing education, research, and practice” (2109). Their focus is on the nurse educators maintaining the standards that are put forth and promoting nursing education. As stated by the JNE, they are “a monthly, peer-reviewed journal publishing original articles and new ideas for nurse educators in various types and levels of nursing programs for over 50 years. The Journal enhances the teaching-learning process, promotes curriculum development, and stimulates creative innovation and research in nursing education” (Spurlock, 2019). JNE focuses on nursing education and clinical nursing which is the scope of practice I am interested in. Conferring with the scope and focus of the Journal of Nursing Education and Practice (JNEP), “JNEP's primary aim is to promote a high standard of clinically related scholarship which supports the practice and education of nursing. The Journal also aims to promote the international exchange of ideas and experience that draw from the different cultures in which practice takes place” (2019). This journal peeked my interest because it focuses on education while addressing the different cultures that we as professionals are faced with regularly. Controversial or Evolving Issues in Nursing Education. As with any careers, there will always be roadblocks to people fulfilling their educational goals. Some things I see as problems for nursing educators is the administration stalling or resisting educators desire to further their education even more. Sometimes I think it is because administration feels threatened by certain staff. I see this in my current job. Once my director found out I was pursuing my master’s degree, things have changed. Mind you my director only has her bachelor’s degree. I feel she has not recognized my desire to further my education .as a positive step for our department. “Faculty members are our most important resource; investing in their growth and development is essential in promoting innovation and excellence at all levels of the educational continuum” (Steinert, et al, 2016, p. 771). Another area that could negatively affect nursing education is teaching in simulated classrooms. Although the manikins’ that are used give a lot of positive feedback, performing skills on a patient is much different. I have seen this first hand when I have had students shadow me in the Emergency Department (ED). Often the students would proclaim that they are only there to observe. I would quickly inform them that they were here to learn. One time, we were performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a patient and I made the students continually exchange places and do compressions. At the end, the students were grateful for the experience and realized how different and exhausting it was to perform CPR on an actual patient. Another positive experience that came out of this for my students was that before the physician called the code, he asked everyone in the room if anybody had an idea of something we hadn’t tried or any objection to stopping CPR. This taught the students an important part of nursing and that was that we all work as a team, regardless of the degree you hold. “Performance of cardiac arrest teams has been enhanced significantly by efforts to develop teamwork and communication. Understanding this relationship is fundamental to designing interventions to optimize team performance” (O’Donoghue, et al, 2015, p.310). If nurses and student nurses realize that when working you are functioning as a team therefore, you are never alone in your endeavor to be successful in your profession. Conclusion As I continue my journey to become a nursing educator, I have realized many opportunities that will assist me in obtaining my dream. There are so many professional organizations and resources for me to become successful in my job aspirations. Pursuing my APRN at Grand Canyon University (GCU) is a step in the right direction for me. References