Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

Benchmark – Future Scope, Role, and Professional Obligations Paper

As nurses learn and work in diverse settings, they acquire multiple skills that empower them to handle current and emerging issues. Due to the complexity of the evolving work environment, nurses should continue exploring opportunities for personal and professional development. They should also adequately understand the scope of their future practice to prepare appropriately. As nursing evolves, many issues continue to affect the scope of practice, and nurses should understand their potential impact, solutions, and significance to the advanced registered nurse. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the scope of my future role, professional nursing organizations influencing advanced nursing, and an evolving issue likely to affect my role in the next few years.

The Scope of Future Role as an Advanced Registered Nurse

Nursing leadership is crucial for high organizational performance and persistent achievement of excellent patient outcomes. According to the American Nurses Association (2023), strong leadership in nursing enables health care delivery to cope with the constant evolution. This evolution is characterized by advances in care approaches, payment models, and organizational issues, among other elements. Consequently, nurse leaders will offer more than monitoring productivity and balancing costs as time progresses. Understanding the probable system and organization-level changes will help nursing professionals looking forward to nursing leadership to prepare and adjust appropriately.

The current health care environment also encounters many issues of varying magnitudes. Central to effective decision-making is nurse leaders, who are responsible for workplace culture, policies, and standards for sustaining excellence. Green (2019) stated that nurse leaders are innovative decision-makers in their work settings and are responsible for change initiatives. As nursing evolves, nurse leaders will play a pivotal role in initiating change to address workplace issues and optimize patient outcomes. Thus, nurse leaders’ scope of future roles is broad and will likely expand to include more responsibilities to enable organizations to adapt as situations change.

Like other specialties, advanced registered nurses seeking leadership roles should obtain appropriate certifications. The purpose of certification is to validate nurses’ skills as knowledgeable professionals able to perform according to their designated roles (Lockhart, 2019). Various agencies are involved in the certification of nurse leaders. The Commission on Nurse Certification (CNC) certifies clinical nurse leaders to ascertain they have demonstrated nursing professional standards and knowledge (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2023). The other agency involved in the certification of nurse leaders is the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL). It certifies nurse leaders and managers through the Certified Nurse Manager and Leader (CNML) examination (American Organization for Nursing Leadership, 2023). These certifications prepare advanced registered nurses to handle the complex leadership role as health organizations strive to remain competitive and evolve progressively.

Three Influential Professional Nursing Organizations

Like other practice areas, a sense of community is essential for nurse leaders. In this case, they should join other like-minded professionals for support, mentorship, and related benefits. Cline et al. (2019) underscored the importance of joining a professional nursing organization for personal and professional development. These organizations bring nurses together to pursue a common goal of advancing practice and patient care. Since they offer different benefits and have varying membership requirements, nurses should evaluate the best according to their missions and worldviews before enrollment.

Among many organizations, the American Nurses Association (ANA) is very influential in advancing the scope and influence of advanced nursing. Founded in 1896, ANA advances nursing by fostering high standards, bolstering nurses’ health and wellness, and playing a central role in advocating for issues affecting nursing professionals and the public (American Nurses Association, 2023). The other influential organization is the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL). AONL serves as the voice of nursing leadership to transform health care in the United States through expert and influential leadership (American Organization for Nursing Leadership, 2023). The Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANPD) also influences advanced nursing through professional development. As the premier organization for nurses involved in professional development, ANPD is open for advanced practice nurses mandated with orientation and onboarding, role development, and quality improvement (Association f