The Nursing career is broad and includes various areas of practice that I intend to explore in my career development journey. My main professional development goals are to acquire the authority to prescribe medication. The main strategy that I will use to accomplish this goal is to study Advanced Nursing Practice so that I can be equipped with advanced clinical education, including medication prescription. I will then look for an internship in a healthcare institution in a State that gives nurses the authority to prescribe medication so that I can practice my skills. The Nurse Licensing Map (2020) lists States that allow nurse practitioners to prescribe medication.

My other goal is to open a healthcare facility in my community to offer various medical services, including home-based medical checkups for the elderly. To achieve this, I need experience in hospital management and business administration to effectively manage the facility. The main strategy that I will use to achieve this goal is taking a short course in business administration and reading various books and articles on hospital management practices to familiarize myself with hospital administration processes and how they vary from ordinary business administration.

The goal to acquire authority to prescribe medication aligns with the University’s emphasis on social changes by increasing access to qualified healthcare personnel who can diagnose diseases and prescribe the right medication. Andermann (2016) argues that increased access to qualified healthcare providers reduces the long queues patients have to make to see a doctor, especially in understaffed healthcare facilities. The goal to open a healthcare facility in my community aligns with the University’s emphasis on social change because it focuses on increasing access to healthcare to create a healthy community. According to Elfa Kiswara Rahmantya et al. (2019), healthcare quality is among the factors contributing to competitive advantage among healthcare facilities. Therefore, I can also use my healthcare facility to set the standard for the quality of healthcare that the community should receive, hence improving the overall quality of healthcare in other healthcare facilities in the community.

References

Andermann, A. (2016). Taking action on the social determinants of health in clinical practice: A framework for health professionals. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 188(17-18), E474-E483. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.160177

Elfa Kiswara Rahmantya, Y., Salim, U., Djumahir, & Djazuli, A. (2019). Hospitals have a competitive advantage through service quality, information systems, and Islamic work ethics. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 17(2), 193-204. https://doi.org/10.21511/ppm.17(2).2019.14

Nurse Practitioner Prescriptive Authority. (2020, October 7). Can a nurse practitioner (NP) prescribe medication? Nursing License Map. https://nursinglicensemap.com/resources/nurse-practitioner-prescriptive-authority/