Abstract
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) enacted the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in October 2014. The DNP program is a single entry degree that the Advanced Practicing Nurses should pursue at the beginning of 2015. This resulted in remarkable changes in the nursing programs. From research studies, it is evident that over 153 DNP programs exist. In addition, there is an impressive rate of enrollment of students in these programs. An additional 106 programs are in the developmental stages. However, recent surveys indicate that for over a decade now, there has been significant progress in numerous nursing schools. Hence, meeting the target of swift transition of APNs from master’s to doctoral level is a reality. Analysis of potential impacts of the DNP initiative requires a broader perspective. This paper offers a succinct discussion of systematic steps that an organization can take to achieve the objectives of AACN. The main goal of AACN is to ensure that all the new APNs go through adequate preparation at the DNP level.
Most empirical research studies conclude that numerous subsets of nursing schools prefer the DNP program. In addition, quite a number of the aforementioned subsets are in the process of introducing the initiative to ensure that existing nurses can pursue further studies after graduating from the master’s level. Dennison, Payne and Farrell (2012) are emphatic that there has been an impressive improvement. On the other hand, it is evident that most nursing schools might not be able to facilitate the full transition from master’s to doctoral level (Dudley-Brown, 2006). Since the latter is a challenging task, alternative and effective steps are instrumental in ensuring the full attainment of the goals and objectives of AACN by 2015.
Rhodes (2011) elucidates that planning is the initial step bearing in mind that it assists organizations to determine the process of transiting from master’s to doctoral level. In other words, there is a need to develop a road map that can guide nursing education. Another step entails assessment of the master’s-to-doctoral programs to ensure an effective transition (Dudley-Brown, 2006). This will help to identify if there is an existing gap or potential challenges that are likely to occur during the transition. Moreover, identification of the program’s outcomes is another crucial step. Before everything is put into practice, a nursing organization’s board ought to examine and be in a position to predict the outcomes of the DNP program.
After identifying the outcomes, the AANC board in every respective organization should determine if the transition is worth the process. After considering the licensure, regulations, and legislation of the program, it is imperative to come up with effective strategies for implementing the program (Dudley-Brown, 2006). During the implementation stage, the organization should determine the intensity of the input in order to achieve the desired output. This involves ensuring that there are enough resources in terms of human resources and study materials in order to facilitate the program. After the full establishment of the program, evaluation is crucial in order to determine the effectiveness of the implementation strategies applied. It might not be possible to understand the progress of the program in the absence of a robust evaluation process. In regards to the human resource team put in place, it is still necessary to promote self-evaluation so that employees can strive to attain the organizational goals and objectives.
References
Dennison, R. D., Payne, C., & Farrell, K. (2012). The doctorate in nursing practice: Moving advanced practice nursing even closer to excellence. Nursing Clinics of North America, 47(2), 225-240.
Dudley-Brown, S. (2006). The New Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Degree: Implications for Advanced Practice Nurses. Gastroenterology Nursing, 29(2), 158-164.
Rhodes, M. (2011). Using Effects-Based Reasoning to Examine the DNP as the Single Entry Degree for Advanced Practice Nursing. The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 16 (3), 1-2.