Nurse Accountability, Career Planning, and Leadership Growth

Personal and Professional Accountability

The concept of professional nurse accountability has been defined by professional nursing bodies and nurse education credentialing bodies as an essential factor underpinning professional practice. As a nurse, I recognize this reality and take accountability and responsibility for all behaviors and actions I exhibit in the workplace. Moreover, I understand the need to appraise myself, strive to improve my practice, and continuously fulfill the learning outcomes I set for myself. Lastly, I work to sustain my physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing so that I am able to practice effectively (CRNBC, 2017).

In this profession, I have acquired the skills to operate within the boundaries of my personal competence levels, the legally accepted scope of practice, and all applicable laws. Acting to support safe, ethical, and proper patient care is also a core dimension of my personal and professional nursing accountability (CRNBC, 2017).

My profession has taught me to support and facilitate the development of practices and policies that align with nursing standards. I recognize the need to maintain my registration and to understand the regulatory agency's role and its relationship to my practice (CRNBC, 2017).

Ethical Conduct and Scope of Practice

Advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) are currently employed in four distinct spheres: (a) clinical nursing specialists, (b) nurse practitioners, (c) certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), and (d) certified nurse midwives. CRNAs deliver analgesic and anesthetic care to patients during a relatively brief yet critical stage of treatment (Campbell, 2011).

Nurse practitioners at their best serve as healthcare providers, collaborators, instructors and educators, care managers, care coordinators, and mentors and role models. They also function as referral sources, consultants, counselors, outreach experts, community partners, program facilitators, and advocates. I recognize the need, as a nursing professional, to be a diligent researcher and record-keeper. I must progress beyond the novice stage and become an expert capable of fulfilling management, leadership, social, and change-agent roles (Campbell, 2011).

Career Planning and Role Development

As a future APRN, I recognize that much remains for me to learn. In my view, learning is not merely a temporary acquisition of skills or knowledge; learning is only truly successful when skills and knowledge become evident across all areas of practice. As I grow professionally, I need to become increasingly knowledgeable about the diverse roles of nurse practitioners in both their personal and professional undertakings (CRNBC, 2017).

My work in the field allows me to study NP functions across diverse roles and to understand the connection between the NP's role and the roles of other healthcare practitioners, including physicians, physician assistants, specialty providers, laboratory technicians, pharmacists, radiologists, and physical, speech, respiratory, occupational, and nutritional therapists. I receive team mentoring and am encouraged to cooperate and communicate with coworkers. Currently, my chief emphasis is on continuous learning and on the clinician, collaborator, and patient educator roles of nurse practitioners (Campbell, 2011).

While I have been able to express some of my views regarding management challenges, I am still uncomfortable in formal leadership roles. However, I believe I have the capacity to build my self-confidence and progressively grow into the leadership role (Savrin, 2009).

Because all learning cannot occur at once, my membership in a healthcare team provides valuable opportunities to collaborate continuously and to discuss treatment methods and alternatives. This, together with routine observation of treatment procedures, involvement in clinical decisions, and the opportunity to contribute to patient care plans, helps me apply my knowledge to the practical environment (Savrin, 2009).