Week 1: Competencies of Advanced Nursing Practice
Week 1 Competencies of Advanced Nursing Practice
Week 1: Competencies of Advanced Nursing Practice
Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember,
involve me and I learn.
— Xun Kuang, Chinese Confucian philosopher
| What do I have to do? | When do I have to do it? |
|---|---|
| Review your Learning Resources. | Days 1–7 |
| Assignment 1: Practicum Site Information | Submit Assignment 1 by Day 2. |
| Assignment 2: Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment | Submit Assignment 2 by Day 7. |
| Assignment 3: Clinical Hour and Patient Logs | Track your clinical hours and patient encounters in Meditrek throughout this Practicum course. Each week, your logs must be completed by Day 7. |
Welcome to your Primary Care of Adults Across the Lifespan Practicum! The practicum experience is an experiential learning opportunity which allows you to gain and refine your clinical nursing skills under the mentorship of a Preceptor. As you engage with patients in the practicum setting, your involvement will extend your learning about a variety of primary healthcare needs and problems of the adult across the lifespan.
Throughout the next 11 weeks, you will evaluate your skill development, reflect on patient encounters, and generate goals related to your growth as an advanced practice nurse. This week, you start by assessing your strengths and opportunities related to Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) or Adult Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP) clinical skills and procedures.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
- Complete Practicum site form
- Assess clinical skills and procedures related to advanced nursing practice
- Assess strengths and opportunities for improvement of clinical skills
- Develop measurable goals and objectives for the practicum experience
- Describe clinical hours and patient encounters
Learning Resources
Required Readings (click to expand/reduce)
Advanced Nursing Practice Competencies and Guidelines
American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2010). Adult-Gerontology primary care nurse practitioner competencies. https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.nonpf.org/resource/resmgr/competencies/adult-geropccomps2010.pdf?hhSearchTerms=Adult-GeroPCComps2010+and+pdf
National Association of Clinical Nurse Specialists (NACNS). (2018). Family across the lifespan: The viability of taking pediatric and adult-gerontology certification examinations to attain CNS population certification in family across the lifespan. http://www.nacns.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Report-FINAL-4-3-18.pdf
The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) (n.d.). National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties. https://www.nonpf.org/
The National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties. (2012). Nurse practitioner core competencies. https://www.pncb.org/sites/default/files/2017-02/NONPF_Core_Competencies.pdf
Practicum Resources
Document: Practicum Site Information Form (Word document)
Document: FNP Clinical Skills List and Resource Review (Word document)
Document: FNP Procedures List and Resource Review (Word document)
Document: FNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form (Word document)
Document: AGPCNP Clinical Skills List and Resource Review (Word document)
Document: AGPCNP Procedure List and Resource Review (Word document)
Document: AGPCNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form (Word document)
HSoft Corporation. (2019). Meditrek: Home. https://edu.meditrek.com/Default.html
Note: Use this website to log into Meditrek to report your clinical hours and patient encounters.
Walden University Field Experience. (2019a). Field experience: College of Nursing. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/fieldexperience/son/home
Walden University Field Experience. (2019b). Student practicum resources: NP student orientation. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/StudentPracticum/NP_StudentOrientation
Walden University. (2019). MSN nurse practitioner practicum manual. https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/fieldexperience/son/formsanddocuments
Assignment 1: Practicum Site Information
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Prior to starting the course, you should have applied for a practicum site following the guidelines for AGACNP practice. Now it is time to make it official. For this Assignment, you provide your Clinical Faculty with information about your practicum site, your preceptor, and your clinical calendar.
To prepare:
- Verify that your practicum application has been approved by logging in to Meditrek.
- Access the Practicum Site Information Form from the Learning Resources.
Assignment
Complete the designated areas of the Practicum Site Information Form, including your practicum site and contact information, your preceptor and contact information, and a schedule of when you plan to engage in practicum activities onsite.
By Day 2
Submit your completed Practicum Site Information Form.
Submit Your Assignment by Day 2
To participate in this Assignment:
Week 1 Assignment 1
Assignment 2: Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment
Photo Credit: AndreyPopov / iStock / Getty Images Plus / Getty Images
Before embarking on any professional or academic activity, it is important to understand the background, knowledge, and experience you bring to it. You might ask yourself “What do I already know? What do I need to know? And what do I want to know?” This critical self-reflection is especially important for developing clinical skills, such as those for advanced practice nursing.
The Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Procedures List and Resource Review and FNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form or Adult Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP) Clinical Skills Resource List and AGPCNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form provided in the Learning Resources can be used to celebrate your progress throughout your practicum and identify skills gaps. The lists cover all necessary skills you should demonstrate during your practicum course.
For this Assignment, you assess where you are now in your clinical skill development and make plans for your practicum. Specifically, you will identify strengths and opportunities for improvement regarding the required practicum skills and procedures.
In this practicum experience, when developing your goals and objectives, be sure to keep adult health guidelines and best practices in mind.
To prepare:
- Review the resources and clinical skills in the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Procedures List and Resource Review and FNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form or Adult Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (AGPCNP) Clinical Skills Resource List and AGPCNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form specific to your selected NP track. It is recommended that you print out these documents to serve as guides throughout your practicum.
- Download the Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form that applies to your NP track to complete this Assignment.
Assignment
Using the Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form specific to your NP track (i.e., FNP or AGPCNP):
- Rate yourself according to your confidence level performing the procedures identified on the Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form.
- Based on your ratings, summarize your strengths and opportunities for improvement.
- Based on your self-assessment and theory of nursing practice, develop 3–4 goals and objectives for this practicum experience. Include them on the designated area of the form.
** YOU MUST HAVE 3 NEW OBJECTIVES EACH QUARTER. You may include previous practicum objectives; however, you still must have 3 new objectives for your current course.
By Day 7
Submit your completed FNP or AGPCNP Clinical Skills and Procedures Self-Assessment Form.
Submission and Grading Information
To submit your completed Assignment for review and grading, do the following:
- Please save your Assignment using the naming convention “WK1Assgn2+last name+first initial.(extension)” as the name.
- Click the Week 1 Assignment 2 Rubric to review the Grading Criteria for the Assignment.
- Click the Week 1 Assignment 2 link. You will also be able to “View Rubric” for grading criteria from this area.
- Next, from the Attach File area, click on the Browse My Computer button. Find the document you saved as “WK1Assgn2+last name+first initial.(extension)” and click Open.
- If applicable: From the Plagiarism Tools area, click the checkbox for I agree to submit my paper(s) to the Global Reference Database.
- Click on the Submit button to complete your submission.
Grading Criteria
To access your rubric:
Week 1 Assignment 2 Rubric
Check Your Assignment Draft for Authenticity
To check your Assignment draft for authenticity:
Submit your Week 1 Assignment draft and review the originality report.
Submit Your Assignment by Day 7
To participate in this Assignment:
Week 1 Assignment 2
Assignment 3: Clinical Hour and Patient Logs
Photo Credit: auremar / Adobe Stock
Clinical Hours
For this course, all practicum activity hours are logged within the Meditrek system. Hours completed must be logged in Meditrek within 48 hours of completion in order to be counted. You may only log hours with preceptors that are approved in Meditrek.
Students with catalog years before Spring 2018 must complete a minimum of 144 practicum hours. Students with catalog years beginning Spring 2018 must complete a minimum of 160 practicum hours.
Each log entry must be linked with an individual practicum Learning Objective or a graduate Program Objective. You should track your hours in Meditrek as they are completed.
Your clinical hour log must include the following:
- Dates
- Course
- Clinical Faculty
- Preceptor
- Total Time (for the day)
- Notes/Comments (including the objective to which the log entry is aligned)
Patient Log
Throughout this course, you will also keep a log of patient encounters using Meditrek. You must record at least 100 patients by the end of this practicum.
The patient log must include the following:
- Date
- Course
- Clinical Faculty
- Preceptor
- Patient Number
- Client Information
- Visit Information
- Practice Management
- Diagnosis
- Procedure (Note: Make sure that, as you perform procedures at your practicum site, you also note those on your printed-out Clinical Skills List.)
- Treatment Plan and Notes
- IV Medication
By Day 7
Record your clinical hours and patient encounters in Meditrek.
Assignment 4
Practicum Manual Acknowledgment
The Practicum Manual describes the structure and timing of the classroom-based and practicum experiences and the policies students must follow to be successful in the nurse practitioner (NP) specialties.
Click here and follow the instructions to confirm you have downloaded and read the entire MSN Nurse Practitioner Practicum Manual and will abide by the requirements described in order to successfully complete this program.
What’s Coming Up in Week 2?
Practicum – Upcoming Deadline
In the Nurse Practitioner programs of study (FNP, AGACNP, AGPCNP, and PMHNP) you are required to take several practicum courses. If you plan on taking a practicum course within the next two terms, you will need to submit your application via Meditrek .
For information on the practicum application process and deadlines, please visit the Field Experience: College of Nursing: Application Process – Graduate web page.
Please take the time to review the Appropriate Preceptors and Field Sites for your courses.
Please take the time to review the practicum manuals, FAQs, Webinars and any required forms on the Field Experience: College of Nursing: Student Resources and Manuals web page.
- Field Experience: College of Nursing Quick Answers
- Field Experience: MSN Nurse Practitioner Practicum Manual
- Student Practicum Resources: NP Student Orientation
Photo Credit: [BrianAJackson]/[iStock / Getty Images Plus]/Getty Images
Next week, you will coordinate a conference call or e-mail with your Clinical Faculty and Preceptor for an orientation and onboarding, as well as to discuss goals and any related questions. You will continue recording your clinical hours and patient encounters in Meditrek. You will also engage in reading to bolster your confidence in evaluating and managing integumentary conditions.
