Nursing Education and its Importance
Nursing knowledge, competency, modern medical practice, and even patient happiness are all built on continuous nursing education (L. Witt, 2011). It provides nurses with up-to-date knowledge of current nursing practices as well as ANA scope and standard requirements, which are necessary for patient safety and comfort. To summarize, some states in America have made continuing education for nurses mandatory. In fact, in order to fully comprehend the ANA scope and standard requirements, nurses in such jurisdictions must complete a number of course credits before obtaining a license to practice (Dossey & Keegan, 2013). Some states, on the other hand, do not consider the importance of ongoing education as such. They leave it to the individual practitioners to accept responsibility and accountability for their continuous education. Nevertheless, in regardless of whether continuous nursing education in some states is mandatory or not, practitioners who describe themselves as nursing professionals must be able and willing to move hand in hand with the health changes by periodically updating their professional competency (ANA, 2013). This working paper compares the pros and cons of nursing education in relations to the ANA Scope and Standards of practice. However, to achieve its ultimate objective, it presents the data in PowerPoint presentation after deliberating on the particular pros and cons of continuous education about ANA standards of practice.
Pros and Cons of Continuous Nursing Education
While continuous training improves professional competencies, the entire process is expensive to implement (ANA, 2013). It means that educating nurses continuously on safe and efficient practice is not economical. Secondly, continuous education improves the quality of care and competency skills (ANA, 2013). However, even so, there exists a substantial resistance of professionalism by nurses against such a requirement. It, as well, motivates nurses towards gaining more skills for the good of all but its process is considerably time-consuming (Ulrich, 2016).
Challenges of Continuous Education
According to Ulrich (2016), continuous learning, additionally, improves the nurses self-testing and evaluation. However, it becomes difficult to evaluate the concrete implementation and preservation of the continuous education (Ulrich, 2016). It means that, despite the abundance of programs offered by ongoing education, not all nurses participate in them. Additionally, it fulfills standard eight of the scope and level of practice, which demands certification for continuous acquisition of skillful knowledge (ANA, 2013). However, it is not a guarantee that the certification awarded signify competency. Not all accreditations are competent (L. Witt, 2011). Some may be vague. As such, the teaching institutions should commit more time and resources to improving skills. In fact, according to L. Witt (2011), nurses as well should take a personal commitment to improving their professional responsibility through continuing education than just aiming for accreditation.
Benefits of Nursing Education
Moreover, while continuous teachings do not attribute in measuring the patients' outcomes regarding satisfaction and treatment, the education for nurses demonstrates the essence of professionalism during practice (ANA, 2013). Likewise, the learning fosters a constant and professional networking for qualified nurses (L. Witt, 2011). However, the networking of today is somewhat biased. It becomes difficult to regulate. Nonetheless, networking acts a tool of professional growth (Ulrich, 2016). For instance, through meetings, the ANA national conferences provide educational opportunities that promote new research and adoption of improved nursing practices (ANA, 2013). They create a channel for networking for particular interest groups, a method that improves nurses' professionalism at the end. In spite of everything, the following presentation summarizes the pros and cons in point form.
References
Dossey, B., & Keegan, L. (2013). Holistic nursing. Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
L. Witt, C. (2011). Continuing Education. Advances In Neonatal Care, 11(4), 227-228. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/anc.0b013e31822648f3
Scope and Standards of Practice. (2013). Nursingworld.org. Retrieved 9 July 2017, from http://www.nursingworld.org/scopeandstandardsofpractice
Ulrich, C. (2016). Nurses at the Table. Hastings Center Report, 46, S2-S4. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/hast.622
