The role of a nurse with a practice doctorate is multifaceted and significantly different from that of a nurse with a research doctorate. As a DNP-prepared nurse, you may serve as a clinical nurse educator, a policy and legislation advocate, an organization leader, or an advanced practice nurse responsible for tracking, installing, and monitoring initiatives aimed at improving nursing and healthcare delivery.
Which role(s) are you most excited about? What do you hope to accomplish as a DNP-prepared nurse? Regardless of what the future holds for you, your Walden DNP program will help you develop the knowledge and skills necessary to enact these roles.
Resources
Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.
Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.
To prepare:
- Review this Week’s Learning Resources, paying special attention to the degree requirements for completing the Walden DNP and AACN’s The Essentials.
- Reflect on your personal motivations and goals in pursuing the DNP degree.
- Consider the expectations and role of a nurse with a practice doctorate and how they may differ from that of a nurse with a research doctorate.
- Reflect on any previous experiences you have had in addressing a gap in practice or a practice change within an organization.
- Consider what it means, as a DNP-prepared nurse, to address an organization’s quality improvement needs by attending to a gap in practice or implementing a practice change.
Post the following:
- A brief explanation of your personal motivations and goals in pursuing the DNP degree.
- A description of the expectations and role of a nurse with a practice doctorate and how they may differ from those of a nurse with a research doctorate.
- A description of how, as a DNP-prepared nurse, you hope to address an organization’s quality improvement needs by attending to a gap in practice or implementing a practice change. Include any previous experiences you have had in addressing a gap in practice or a practice change within an organization.
Note: Your posts should be a substantial (500 words minimum), supported with scholarly evidence from your research and/or the Learning Resources, and properly cited using APA Style. Personal anecdotes are acceptable as part of a meaningful post but cannot stand alone as the entire post.
