Professionalism In The Standards Of Professional Nursing Practice

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Professionalism I’ve reflected on the word professionalism a lot in the last two weeks and how I would define it. The majority of us will have experienced various jobs throughout our lives, each of which would require different skill sets. Regardless of the industry, whatever it may be, every person shares one common objective in his or her career: to succeed. In order for one to succeed, it is imperative that professionalism is demonstrated in all aspects. Finkelman and Kenner (2016) define professionalism as “the conduct, aims, or qualities that characterize or mark a profession” (Finkelman & Kenner, 2016). Professionalism is not just one thing. It is a combination of characteristics or qualities that one possesses that he or she may …show more content…

Commitments include a lifetime of learning, following standards, participating in memberships of professional organizations, and ensuring that nursing care is being provided at the highest quality levels (Finkelman & Kenner, 2016). The American Nurses Association (ANA) and its members developed the Nursing: Scope and Standards of Practice (ANA, 2010a). The ANA defines The Standards of Professional Nursing Practice as “authoritative statements of duties that all registered nurses, regardless of role, population, or specialty, are expected to perform competently” (ANA, 2010a). These standards are important to nursing and the delivery of healthcare as they maintain safe, clinically capable and competent nursing practice. Equally, they are imperative to our nursing profession as they guide and promote clinical practices as well as influence the quality of those practices. Professional standards are utilized to provide structure for developing clinically competent checklists and proficiency evaluations (Davis, 2014). Furthermore, professional standards of practice aid in the development of safe practices by defining a scope of practice. The definition of “who, what, where, when, why, and how” (Finkelman & Kenner, 2016) that a scope of practice defines, helps determine safe nursing …show more content…

Professional organizations aid in generating ideas, establishing and maintaining the trust of society, and they work proactively to uphold a healthy profession. To ensure nurses are maintaining a greater status in healthcare, professional organizations need to continue to provide education to all professional nurses, members or not, as well as to society (Matthews, 2012). Education constantly leads to new information. Education should focus on working with nursing professionals as well as legislators on how to continue to advocate for the nursing profession and to find new respects to support and strengthen healthcare. In addition, being apart of a professional organization provides opportunities for professional growth and development in the nursing profession, allowing nurses the opportunity to have a voice. Ongoing efforts, on behalf of professional organizations, to allow nurses a right to participate in making decisions about nursing and healthcare will empower nurses to utilize their voice within the

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