AACN BSN Essentials Paper

AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 2 The role of today’s nurses has progressed beyond patching wounds and making beds. The 21st-century nurse requires a skill set that encompasses a well-rounded educational background, preparing them with the fundamentals of nursing practice. They also require comprehensive knowledge to address the needs of various cultures, age demographics, and developments in technology, science, and the populations they serve. To address these needs, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2008) developed The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Nursing Professional Nursing Practice. The Essentials provides a framework for institutions to build their educational programs to ensure all nurses graduate with the same comprehensive knowledge. It encompasses nine areas of knowledge for generalist nurses to be competent for entry into the healthcare environment. Each in the titled document detail expected outcomes with sample content. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the events that drove the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to develop the Essentials, describe each component, and how they promote nurses to be the competent professionals providing quality healthcare in various settings around the world. The nine essentials are: I: Liberal Education for Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice II: Basic Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality Care and Patient Safety III: Scholarship for Evidence-Based Practice IV: Information Management and Application of Patient Care Technology V: Health Care Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments VI: Interprofessional Communication and Collaboration for Improving Patient Health Outcomes VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health VIII: Professionalism and Professional Value AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 3 IX: Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice Background There was a point in time where admission to the hospital could result in acquiring a hospital-acquired infection or leaving surgery with the wrong limb amputated. These incidents occurred due to significant issues with quality and safety in the healthcare system. Accreditation and regulatory agencies like Joint Commission and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services began investigating these issues to discover ways to rectify them. Medicare ceased payment for hospital acquired infections, including stage III and IV pressure injuries, beginning the last quarter of 2008 (Bae, 2017). Hospitals had a financial incentive to improve the care being provided. The nursing force was recognized as a viable source to address these concerns directly in their roles within hospitals and long-term care facilities (AACN, 2008). However, during this time, the global healthcare system was experiencing a nursing shortage. Although students were enrolling in nursing programs, it wasn't sufficient to meet industry demands. Educators recognized that new nurses entering educational programs required a diverse education to meet the needs of the environments in which they would be practicing care (AACN, 2008). At the rate nurses were entering the field, advances in healthcare practice, medical and information technology were changing rapidly. The populations they served were also changing as people from different cultures, nations, socioeconomic backgrounds, and age groups were integrated into the communities. Nurses in training and practice would be required to adapt to these changes. Their training needed to reflect a model that included components focused on diversity, technology, evidence-based practice, and continuous learning (AACN, 2008) The AACN responded to the changes in global healthcare by developing The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Nursing Professional Nursing Practice. In 2004, the AACN AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 4 declared that entry-level professional nurses' minimum education requirement would be a baccalaureate degree. In 2008, they published nine essential components for this level of education and beyond that describe the knowledge and professional characteristics nurses will need to practice today and, in the future (AACN, 2008). Purpose of the Essentials The AACN created the Essentials as a basis for educational programs to model their curriculum. The goal was to standardize the knowledge base of nurses entering the healthcare arena. They believed that the nine areas outlined in the Essentials were focus areas that contained concepts to prepare nurses for practice as care providers, coordinators, managers, and professionals (AACN, 2008). Concepts nurses would gain include quality improvement, patient safety, clinical reasoning, critical thinking, and professionalism (AACN, 2008). The concepts obtained from the Essentials are designed to be built upon as nurses progress in their pre-licensure education and as they continue in practice and higher levels of education. The AACN has developed a set of Essentials for Masters' or Advance Level Nursing Education. However, there is not a specific set of Essentials for doctoral-level nursing, concepts from the Advanced Level to their specific educational programs (AACN, 2021). Overview of the Essentials Each of the Essentials contains a rationale for the titled subject, a list of skills the generalist graduate is expected to obtain that can be applied to nursing practice. Essential I: Liberal Education for Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice aims to provide a liberal educational background with sciences and arts. A liberal arts education exposes nurses to a full spectrum of knowledge to better address culture and diversity in their practice (AACN, 2008). AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 5 Essential II: Basic Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality Care and Patient Safety - This area requires nurses to understand leadership structure, healthcare policy and how it is created, and regulations that guide care organizations. This helps nurses understand how these aspects of the healthcare system impact health care quality and safety standards (AACN, 2008). Essential III: Scholarship for Evidence-Based Practice - This Essential prepares nurses to identify practice issues that can be addressed with evidence and evaluated for improvement. Nurses are able to incorporate studied and codified best practices at the bedside that address the needs expressed by the patient, thus improving patient outcomes (AACN, 2008). Essential IV: Information Management and Application of Patient Care Technology This Essential exposes nurses to information systems and technology used in a variety of healthcare settings. Nurses must have the knowledge to use clinical information systems to make informed decisions and provide safe care (AACN, 2008). Essential V: Health Care Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments - All are topics that influence the scope of nursing practice. This includes how laws regarding health care are made, where funding comes from, how care is paid for and insurance companies are reimbursed and rules that dictate operations within various healthcare settings (ACCN, 2008). Nurses must understand how these affect resources and impart limitations in access to care so they may advocate for themselves and their patients. Essential VI: Interprofessional Communication and Collaboration for Improving Patient Health Outcomes - Nurses operate within a healthcare system that is dependent on all members of the care team working together to provide high-quality, safe patient care (AACN, 2008). Nurses must graduate with the competency to communicate effectively (orally and in writing) with professionals at all levels to relay patient needs and execute treatment plans. AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 6 Essential VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health - Nurses require the ability to comprehend health determinants and ways to mitigate disease through prevention education (AACN, 2008). Identifying the health concerns in the populations they serve allows nurses the capability to deliver targeted education in communities to promote healthy lifestyles (AACN, 2008). Essential VIII: Professionalism and Professional Value - Nurses belong to a professional group that demonstrates distinct values and abides by a code of ethics, holding them accountable to professional standards (AACN, 2008). Graduate nurses must learn these practices early on as they are required to be demonstrated in their educational programs when taking exams, performing skills evaluations, and during clinicals. Essential IX: Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice - The final Essential culminates all of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes obtained throughout their baccalaureate program. Upon completion of their nursing education, the generalist nurse will be prepared to enter the workforce with the ability to use critical thinking skills and clinical to provide collaborative, evidence-based, holistic, patient-centered care across the life continuum, to all demographics, with varying illnesses utilizing medical and information technology within the guidelines and policies of their healthcare organization and governing bodies (AACN, 2008). Professional Nursing Practice Discussion Discuss historical racial issues and how Essentials has opened door for diversity and recruiting of nurses from different ethnic groups Patient centered care According to the Essentials (2008), the use of evidence-based practice is at the heart of professional nursing. Novice nurses must operate utilizing skills that have been validated and AACN BSN ESSENTIALS PAPER 7 tested by sound research. Promoting evidence-based practice in facilities allows the nurse to engage in critical thinking and exercise a questioning attitude in situations where there are opportunities for improvement. It also gives them an opportunity to be part of the quality improvement process. Additionally, it provides a means for standardization through the use of checklists and guides to follow best practices when there are deviations the prescribed standard of care (Carter et al., 2017). Conclusion