Western Governors University: NURSING C918 Analysis on ANE Role FINAL 2,100% CORRECT

Western Governors University: NURSING C918 Analysis on ANE Role FINAL 2 Analysis of the ANE Role Karalyn Newman-Willard College of Health Professions, Western Governors University C918: Evolving Roles of Nurse Educators in Diverse Environments Erika Higginbotham/Henrietta Hanna 4 October 2022 Analysis of ANE Role The academic nurse educator (ANE) plays a critical role in the healthcare world. An ANE functions dynamically within the world of academia, the healthcare systems, and the community by providing education, experience, and guidance while also being a spearhead for policy change. They take on many responsibilities in creating a foundation and future for the nursing profession. Challenges are faced in every role and must be overcome to ensure proficient and impactful outcomes. A key factor in becoming a successful ANE is the ability to analyze issues within the system and being able to reduce their negative impact. Success depends on a solid developmental plan that best suits each individual and must be highly researched to ensure a long and meaningful career. Roles and Responsibilities ANEs are multifocal professionals that assume many roles and responsibilities within the nursing and academic communities. One of the most critical roles is to ensure safe, quality patient care in all settings. Beginning in curriculum development, ANEs must be focused on forming educational materials and approaches that are fluid and up-to-date. Curriculum needs to be based on current standards and competencies including patient-centered care, teamwork and collaboration, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, safety, and informatics (Oermann et al., 2018). Teaching strategies, student learning styles, and evaluation techniques need to be developed based on evidence-based practices, similar to how patient care policy change is accomplished, and is important in ensuring proper student development in safe, quality patient care (Oermann et al., 2018). Transferring curriculum and evidence-based classroom strategies to lab and clinical settings will also help to foster student growth and reinforce information learned to practice safe, quality patient care. ANEs also have a responsibility to continue to grow themselves through continued learning, lecturing, becoming mentors, and being advocates of change to continue to support the future of safe and high-quality patient care. Functioning Within the Parent Institution When coming into the role of an ANE, one must understand the many facets involved in being a functional member of the parent institution. Within the nursing program, ANEs will develop a curriculum, teach a specific amount of course hours, be a part of program committees, and advise students. Advising students and preparing them for the professional transition will be an expectation of ANEs outside of the classroom and clinical setting by being available to students, specifically during office hours (Halstead and Frank, 2018). Within the nursing department, ANEs will also utilize one another as resources, reviewers, and mentors. Facility members also participate in scholarly activities such as grant writing to help develop the nursing program (Oermann et al., 2018). The nursing program will be the focus of the ANE, but they will also be expected to participate in activities within the parent institution. Depending on the institution, ANEs may be expected to participate in committees or boards at the institutional level, be present for university functions, and participate in service projects. Some institutions will also look to the nursing departments to form committees and clubs that serve the student population in health care education and screenings. External Stakeholders External stakeholders contribute to and collaborate with ANEs to help facilitate and enhance their role. Many external stakeholders support the success of ANEs that include professional organizations, state associations, accrediting bodies, and state boards. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) “serves as the catalyst for excellence and innovation in nursing education, research, and practice” and provides support for ANEs to learn and excel in their profession (AACN,2021c). The AACN is a strong collaborator in ANE development and support by providing resources that guide the ANE in practicing and promoting excellence in nursing education. The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) is “an autonomous accrediting agency, contributing to the improvement of the public’s health” and “ensures the quality and integrity of baccalaureate, graduate, and residency programs in nursing” and focuses on the development and credibility of nursing programs (Oermann et al., 2018). The presence of organizations like the CCNE and other accrediting agencies ensures quality in nursing programs to help improve patient care by setting expectations of education and evaluation. Communication Strategies Communication is a key factor in developing and sustaining positive relationships among institutions and external stakeholders. The communication must be concise, relevant, and address the necessary points to guarantee success between the two groups. AACN provides guidelines to help institutions prepare for and continue their partnership (AACN, 2021a). The guide is an outline of expectations and points to include to indicate how the institution has stayed aligned with the AACN expectations. With these highly detailed documents, the relationships between institutional boards, containing members from all levels of the institution, and the AACN work together to improve the quality of education delivered to nursing students. The CCNE completes on-site evaluations to approve initial and continued accreditation. During these evaluations, many aspects and levels of the institution are assessed. To prepare for these evaluations, boards are typically formed to prepare and participate in the on-site evaluations. During these board meetings, many topics are discussed including how the institution is aligned with the CCNE goals, how to demonstrate that alignment, aspects that need to be improved, and how to participate in the evaluations. Once the CCNE evaluation and report are completed, institutions develop any necessary revision plans for accreditation and respond in written form (ACCN, 2021b). Through each of these steps, strong verbal and written communication is necessary to complete assessments, create improvement plans, and maintain a strong relationship with the CCNE accreditation board. Interprofessional Collaboration Interprofessional collaboration is required to provide optimal patient outcomes. Having the opportunity to discuss cases not only creates better outcomes for patients but allows for all individuals to learn from one another and better understand and work with each other. ANEs play a pivotal role in developing individuals who can actively participate in interprofessional collaboration. One crucial step in creating interprofessional collaboration is understanding the role of various disciplines in healthcare. To establish this groundwork, having members of each discipline present as guest lecturers to explain their roles and how they work amongst the healthcare team would be beneficial (Oermann et al., 2018). Another means to develop interprofessional collaboration is practicing in the classroom by creating group exercises in which the students must research and then function as each profession in the healthcare team to analyze, discuss, and present various patient cases (Oermann et al., 2018). An additional way to better understand interprofessional collaboration is to have students review patient cases and then participate in rounds that involve multiple disciplines as they discuss the plan of care, how each discipline will contribute to the care, and develop relationships among each group. Challenge Summary The landscape of nursing has been rapidly changing, especially in the wake of the Covid epidemic. With seasoned nurses retiring, some transitioning into non-patient-facing roles, and many more leaving the field entirely, the already large nursing shortage is continuing to grow exponentially. To fill the needs, more individuals need to be admitted to nursing programs and trained properly. There are not enough nurses or ANEs to fill the void being created. This identified challenge can be seen as educational, cultural, or economic because there is a lack of needed ANEs in the educational system, the culture of nursing has been impacted by Covid creating a culture of burnout, and the low compensation of ANEs is contributing to the shortage of ANEs. Impact of the Identified Challenge Limited resources are not only material but also come in the form lack of labor and morale. Having limited personnel can be challenging for any field, but the shortage in nursing affects humanity. When there are not enough nurses, patients suffer greatly. As ANEs, it can be difficult to be responsible for cultivating the future of nursing when it seems bleak, but it can be even more difficult when there is increased pressure on limited ANEs. When there are not enough ANEs to instruct students, there is not enough to teach each other and share their experiences as mentors. Compensation for the ANE is also currently not equivalent to what nurses can make in other roles, further impacting the number of people willing to be in the ANE role. Feeling overwhelmed, under-supported, and under-compensated makes the job of an ANE more challenging and less enticing further increasing the shortage. Scholarly Sources From the perspective of the nursing program administrators, many factors are contributing to the nursing faculty shortage. Jarsonski et al. (2022) used an interviewing process that identified four main contributing factors to ANE shortages. The first issue identified was the onboarding and integration process seen in institutions. Programs that viewed onboarding and integration as the same process do not fair as well as those institutions that have strong mentorship programs following ANE onboarding (Jarsonski et al., 2022). The second factor was dubbed “the elephant in the room,” referring to a lack of compensation for ANEs. Having salaries that are not competitive to practice and introducing new faculty at similar or higher rates than established faculty, causing resentment, creates a void in active ANEs (Jarsonski et al., 2022). “Making do and getting by” by utilizing the faculty they have to fill the gaps is also addressed. The inability to recruit and retain staff, especially in specialty areas, causes institutions to use current and adjunct staff that do not have experience in such areas to teach classes which further puts strain on the institution (Jarsonski et al., 2022). Lastly, changing expectations of staff have impacted the ANE shortage. As the demographics and expectations of ANEs change, institutional staff experience greater workloads and shift focus from student preparation and scholarly research to maintaining the status quo (Jarsonski et al., 2022). This article explored real-life identified challenges to the ANE shortage and thoroughly investigated each issue. Bittner and Bechtel (2017) focused their research on workload distribution and diversity among ANEs at multiple institutions. With 68,938 possible students turned away from nursing programs, the lack of necessary ANEs is contributing to the declining availability of nurses the country needs to provide adequate care (Bittner and Bechtel, 2017). Lacking diversity in the ANE field, specifically in age with a large majority nearing retirement, places an increased stressor on the availability of ANEs to teach future nurses (Bittner and Bechtel, 2017). They also focus on workload distribution and the lack of definition of their role as a contributing factor to the decline in ANEs (Bittner and Bechtel, 2017). Being overloaded and not having defined expectations leads to ANEs and others do not want to be involved in educational institutions. Gazza (2018) investigates the development of ANEs and recognizes that there is little focus on their preparation for the role of an ANE. The fall of 2017 saw over 50,000 applicants turned away from nursing programs, meaning 50,000 potential future nurses were ultimately eliminated from the workforce because of a lack of nursing faculty (Gazza, 2018). Although ANEs play a critical part in the training and preparation of future advanced practice registered nurses (APRN), they are not considered APRNs themselves (Gazza, 2018). Without this recognition, those who are interested in faculty roles might not pursue this career choice because they are not considered APRNs and do not receive comparable compensation. Lacking such benefits makes the role less appealing to potential future ANEs. Opportunities and Barriers Preparing and maintaining a robust ANE workforce is necessary for the future of nursing and not addressing the challenge of cultivating adequate ANE numbers will be detrimental to the healthcare system. A perpetual theme in inadequate ANEs is the lack of preparation for the role. Having educational pathways that focus on integrating ANEs into the faculty role while also following a track that will create APRN-level ANEs may help eliminate the lack of interest (Gazza, 2018). Pursuing educational tracks comparable to APRNs may dissuade some from becoming ANEs but will recruit the most desirable individuals. Once in the position of ANE, challenges of overwork and lack of scope can be detrimental to retention and can be solved by maintaining adequate staff who work within a defined arena of their expertise. Barriers to staff retention in institutions involve fear of and resistance to change. As institutions have made do with the current culture of “getting by,” some institutions may prefer to continue in their ways and not seek to add more faculty while overworking those that do stay (Jarosinski et al., 2022). Increasing the compensation of ANEs and making the role more lucrative will attract more nurses to the role and prevent the loss of current ANEs to areas of higher pay. Some institutions pay based on experience level without consideration of department but paying those in the nursing departments higher salaries will assist in recruitment and retention (Jarosinski et al., 2022). This strategy may help maintain nursing department staff but may cause resentment among departments and create hostile environments within institutions. Carefully considering the opportunities and barriers in addressing inadequate ANEs is imperative in strategy development and implementation to solve such a challenge. Teaching, Scholarship, and Service Teaching will be my primary focus based on the expectation of my institution, especially early in my career. As an ANE, I will utilize the clinical expertise I have gained to present the institutional curriculum in a dynamic and multifaceted manner. Using classroom, simulation, and clinical settings to share knowledge and skills will allow for proper educational experiences for each student. Developing my “teaching presence” is important in the ANE transition because it will allow me to develop my style and philosophy of teaching (Halstead and Frank, 2018, p. 109). I will also use office time to develop relationships with my students and attempt to foster mentorship. Establishing strong but professional relationships with my student will allow me to properly interact with my students. Evaluation is also a key factor in teaching and must be based on institutional expectations and shared with students in a constructive fashion. Researching and practicing evidence-based methods for teaching and evaluation will be key to a successful transition. Scholarship will ultimately be based on the type of institution I find myself in as an ANE. Research is a pivotal part of functioning as an ANE. Some institutions require their instructors to actively participate in research and as it is critical for development as a professional. Research and publication bring notoriety and funding to institutions and those are driving factors in its requirement. I, currently, am not highly interested in professional research but scholarship is essential for continued professional development. Having a “spirit of inquiry” and continuing to read and apply others' research into my practice will assist me in staying abreast with current knowledge and help me disseminate that knowledge to others (Halstead and Frank, 2018, p. 118). Boyer’s scholarship of teaching will be my most used model during my early career because as a new educator, meeting the learning needs of all my students will be my main desire (Billings and Halstead, 2016). Service will not be my initial focus as I transition into the role of ANE. Gaining experience in the field of academia will require that I focus on my new role in teaching. As develop my skills and become more established in my role, I will be able to begin my journey in service. At the institutional level, requirements of service will be varied based on the type of institution. Committees among the nursing and health departments will be a solid area to start my service and then I can eventually become involved in institutional-level committees. Further areas of service could be based in my community through health-based committees and participating in professional organizations. As I become more competent and confident in my role, my service can become more of a focus. Ethics, Values, and Cultural Norms Ethics in nursing education comes in many forms. In class ethical issues can be prepared for while transitioning into the ANE role, while other ethical issues can present themselves without warning. To create an environment of respect for my students and them for me, I will focus on maintaining ethical practices in ensuring their dignity, allowing only professional relationships, and holding myself and my students accountable (Boozaripour et al., 2017). Keeping criticism and evaluation constructive and not demeaning will also help me maintain my ethical expectations as an educator. I have ethical standards of ensuring excellence and competency in myself and will also expect that from my students (Boozaripour et al., 2017). Teaching to the best of my abilities will allow my students to reach excellence and competency. Ethical standards of educational justice must also be addressed when they arise. If faced with a challenge whether it is plagiarism, cheating, or something levied against me, I will approach it with professionalism and maintain institutional standards. Values of nursing are incredibly important in practicing safe, quality patient care. To ensure my students develop this skill, I will discuss and demonstrate these values in my classroom. Five core values of human dignity, integrity, autonomy, altruism, and social justice are discussed by Fahrenwald et al. (2005) and hold a rightful place in the classroom. Human dignity can be upheld by respecting each student's differences and varying my teaching methods to accommodate needs and learning styles. Integrity will be demonstrated by holding myself accountable for my actions and by teaching my students the importance of honesty and learning from mistakes. I will also maintain autonomy by creating learning assignments that allow students to decide how to demonstrate their knowledge and teach students how autonomy works in the nursing profession. Altruism can be done by demonstrating compassion for personal issues my students may be facing and creating assignments that encourage students to investigate their definition and acts of altruism (Fahrenwald et al., 2005). Social justice is a major issue in both the classroom and society. Teaching on matters of health disparities is important, but eliminating roadblocks to underserved students, treating all students equally, and not allowing students to disparage one another are pivotal to social justice in the classroom. Cultural norms in nursing education can be hard to define. I plan to study and uphold institutional policies and expectations to maintain the cultural norms of the institution. In clinicals, I will also function as an example in demonstrating the facility’s culture and expect my students to do the same. I will also discuss and demonstrate what can be considered the cultural norms of nursing. Wholistic caring is important to address all issues of a patient and their family and can be demonstrated by educators treating students as individuals and respecting their beliefs. Having empathy for students, actively listening, and creating nonjudgmental environments will also assist me to include cultural norms in my ANE transition. Academic Environment Type My initial step into an ANE role would best be suited in a smaller community college in either an ADN or BSN program. Being in a smaller institution would make me feel more comfortable because of smaller classes, smaller faculty numbers, and smaller campuses. Having little experience in the realm of education would make the transition into a large institution daunting and stressful. The level of degree does not concern me, but my local community college is limited to an ADN program. My first choice would be to become a full-time ANE and then assess if my ability to continue my clinical practice is feasible. Gaining experience would be my main goal in my first ANE role to help me eventually gain my doctoral degree and teach at a larger institution.