Professional Progress Summary

NURS 431- Transition to Professional Nursing Practice

Purpose of Assignment
The purpose of this assignment is to address the students attainment of all eight
behaviors and/or competencies that are specific outcomes of the program including: critical
thinking, nursing practice, communication, teaching, research, leadership, professionalism, and
culture.
Student Approach to Assignment
This paper summarizes the progression that I have made from my sophomore to senior
year. Specific examples provide insight into exactly how I grew in the eight core curriculum
objectives. I am able to highlight my progress as I move towards becoming a registered nurse.
This paper is an excellent reflection of my experiences in nursing school.
Reason for Inclusion of the Assignment in the Portfolio
This assignment is included in the portfolio because it showcases my progress in the eight
core curriculum behaviors of: critical thinking, nursing practice, communication, teaching,
research, leadership, professionalism, and culture. It is a required component in my portfolio that
highlights how I attained a number of the end program outcomes.
! Critical Thinking
" Uses decision-making skills in making clinical or professional judgments.
" Engages in creative problem solving.
! Nursing Practice
" Applies appropriate knowledge of major health problems to guide nursing practice.
" Implements traditional nursing care practices as appropriate to provide holistic health
care to diverse populations across the life span.
! Communication
" Uses therapeutic communication within the nurse-patient relationship.
! Teaching
" Provides relevant and sensitive health education information and counseling to patients,
and families, in a variety of situations and settings.
" Evaluates the efficacy of health promotion and education modalities for use in a variety
of settings with diverse populations.

! Research
" Applies research-based knowledge from the arts, humanities and sciences to complement
nursing practice.
! Leadership
" Assumes a leadership role within ones scope of practice as a designer, manager, and
coordinator of health care to meet the special needs of vulnerable populations in a
variety of practice settings.
" Delegates and supervises the nursing care given by others while retaining the
accountability for the care given to the patient.
! Professionalism
" Differentiates between general, institutional, and specialty-specific standards of practice
to guide nursing care.
" Understands the effect of legal and regulatory processes on nursing practice and health
care delivery, as well as limits to ones own scope of practice.
" Demonstrates accountability for ones own professional practice.
" Applies ethical decision-making framework and legal guidelines to clinical situations that
incorporate moral concepts, professional ethics, and advocacy for patient well-being
preferences.
" Advocates for professional standards of practice using organizational and political
processes.
! Culture
" Articulates an understanding of how human behavior is affected by culture, race,
religion, gender, lifestyle and age.
" Demonstrates sensitivity to personal and cultural definitions of health, and how these
beliefs influence an individuals reactions to the illness experience and end of life.
" Integrates knowledge of cultural diversity in performing nursing interventions.