Running head: PROFESSIONAL ROLE

Professional Role
Salena Barnes, RN, BSN
NRSG 7410
Georgia College and State University

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Professional Role

The role of the nurse practitioner (NP) is ever evolving and changing in response to the
demands of our healthcare system. As leaders in primary and acute health care, NPs pool the
roles of provider, mentor, educator, researcher and administrator (Nurse Practitioners of Oregon,
2016). Members of the profession are accountable for advancing the role of the NP and
safeguarding the standards of the profession. This is accomplished through involvement in
professional organizations and participation in health policy activities at the local, state, national
and international levels (Nurse Practitioners of Oregon, 2016). Through my experiences in this
program, my order of thinking has evolved, which contributes to my understanding of the
professional role of the NP.
Reflection on where you were on the professional role when starting the program.
Before I decided to pursue a Masters of Science in Nursing (MSN), I worked in a variety
of settings as a registered nurse (RN) to include Medical-Surgical, Surgical Trauma Intensive
Care Unit (ICU), Orthopedics, and at a Pain Management Clinic. For me as an RN, my
professional role involved being a patient advocate, delegating tasks, and participating in
interdisciplinary team care of patients. I was responsible for competently performing task which
involved day-to-day care of patients in various settings in which I was employed. I viewed my
role as the person that carried out the orders of the physician. Basically, I was responsible for
completing tasks, alerting the appropriate health care provider of status changes in patients, and
ensuring patient safety. I utilized evidence-based practices, but was not clear on why these
practices were in use. As an RN, my focus was more on what to do versus now as a Masters
prepared nurse; it is more about the why.

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What parts of the program helped you to become more proficient in the professional role?
The primary parts of the program that helped me to become more proficient in the
professional role of the nurse practitioner (NP) were the classes and my clinical experiences. The
clinical experiences helped me to take the things we learned in class and put them into practice. I
especially found value in the preceptors I worked with throughout the program. Additionally, the
face-to-face skills competency meetings helped to cement my view of the advanced practice role.
Moreover, the faculty, particularly Dr. MacMillan and Dr. Coke described countless personal
experiences from their practice that assisted in my understanding of the professional role of the
NP. Their examples of ethical dilemmas illustrated many facets of the professional role to include
communication and collaboration, shared decision-making, use of evidence-based practice,
ethical practice, leadership via coaching and mentoring. Lastly, the Mercer Standardized Patient
experiences provided an opportunity to practice the skills I need to be proficient in this new role.
Also, it was a great learning opportunity for self-reflection, as it was recorded and I was able to
review my performance.
What did you do to help yourself meet this outcome?
The most important thing I did for myself to help to meet this outcome was reflect on my
experiences, accept constructive criticism, and change my practices accordingly. I believe selfreflection is the only way to learn about yourself and grow as a professional. This journey to
becoming an advanced practice nurse has been a huge opportunity for personal and professional
growth. I worked very hard to learn about technologies and electronic resources that can aid in
my practice such as Epocrates, MedLine Plus, and National Guidelines Clearinghouse. At the
onset of this program, I was not as proficient in the use of technology, but now I am. Moreover,
traveling to Honduras was an experience that I will never be able to replicate. I learned so much

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about the professional role at that time. I saw the leadership, advocacy, cultural diversity, health
promotion and disease prevention, collaboration, and ethical aspects of the profession in action.
It was truly an invaluable experience.
What could you have done better to become more proficient?
In order to become more proficient in the professional role, I could have joined more
professional organizations to improve my overall understanding of the nursing profession. I can
always continue to expand my knowledge base. Research has always been an area of weakness
for me. Thus, examining more research and even participating in research studies would help me
in this area. Additionally, learning to network with members of the profession, not just locally,
but globally is an area of improvement for me.
What could the SON have done better to help you or other students with this outcome?
I think the SON has done well at preparing me for my new role as a NP. I think the
professional role is a well-covered topic in this program. Communication and collaboration was
encouraged through several group projects over the course of the program. Our research class
educated us on evidence-based practice, ethical research studies, and how and where to look for
best practices. I gained a good amount of informatics information during the research class.
Along the way, with each class my knowledge base as increased and my ability to perform in the
role has improved.
However, in developing proficient NP graduates, I think requiring students to participate
in activities like Legislative day, professional conferences, and join nursing organizations would
be a step toward helping them with the professional role. It would also increase their access to
others within the profession and encourage networking. Moreover, more case studies that

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focused on ethical dilemmas could help graduates feel more comfortable in taking the lead in
their practice.

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References

Nurse Practitioners of Oregon. (2016). What is a nurse practitioner? Retrieved from

http://www.nursepractitionersoforegon.org/?page=12