course material

1. Discussion-Nursing Core Competencies
Discussion-Nursing Core CompetenciesCore competencies are integral in nursing practice.
Apart from helping to maintain the social status and value of nursing as a profession, they
ensure the effective delivery of high-quality care. Nursing competencies embrace behavioral
attitudes and expertise in advanced nursing skills. Behavioral attitudes are such as
accountability, being skillful, willingness to serve, judgment, responsibility, and efficiency
among others. Expert nursing skills include; collaboration, innovation, adjustment to stress,
communication, research, and management among others. This paper discusses
communication and EBP as the two major core competencies that the author considered
most important to future nursing practice. To nurture very competent nurses, nursing
education emphasizes on core competencies, imparting learners with skills for critical
thinking, and incorporates evidence-based and problem-based learning in the nursing
curriculum. Discussion-Nursing Core CompetenciesCommunicationAlthough there exists
some inter-relation among all the competencies, I am certain that EBP (evidence-based
practice) and communication are the most significant to my future practice. Effective
communication among healthcare providers is imperative in delivering patient-centric care
(AACN, n.d). Nurses do communicate daily when providing routine nursing care with
different people such as; colleague nurses, physicians, occupational, physical and
respiratory therapists, families, patients, and unlicensed healthcare providers.The mode of
communication is highly dependent on the party in communication since the choice of
words varies significantly. When communicating with a family or patient, it is imperative to
ensure that they comprehend the shared information and to desist from using medical
jargon, as it is poorly understood among people outside the medical field (Massachusetts
Department of Higher Education Nursing Initiative, 2016). Instead, using clear, simple
language with short and well-structured sentences promotes comprehension and improves
a patient's health literacy.ORDER A PLAGIARISM-FREE PAPER HEREEvidence-Based
PracticeThe American healthcare system is undergoing significant changes that require the
delivery of nursing care to be based on the best scientific evidence that guarantees quality
care, patient safety, and good outcomes (Massachusetts Department of Higher Education
Nursing Initiative, 2016). Using evidence and research in practice necessitates that nurses
can articulate and accept evidence, yet occasionally, nurses usually rely on intuitive and
traditional processes to justify interventions. There are also incidences when nursing
interventions can be framed through previously obtained knowledge in formal education
and experience in practice hence, without a specific rationale, there will always exist

2. variations in practice.Since healthcare delivery changes from time to time, it is inarguable
that EBP will be very essential in my future nursing practice. Using the most recent
scientific evidence to guide decision-making will improve patient health outcomes, patient
satisfaction, and nurses’ morale. However, one of the biggest barriers to using evidence-
based practice in nursing practice is inadequate time (Harding, 2014). However,
establishing approaches to improve EBP in routine clinical practice will impact positively on
patient safety and healthcare quality. Failure to use the best and most recent scientific
evidence to guide decision making in routine care can potentially result in errors and
patient harm. Discussion-Nursing Core CompetenciesConclusionNursing core competencies
are integral to the nursing profession since they help to maintain the social status and value
of nursing as a profession and ensure effectiveness in the provision of high-quality care.
EBP and communication are the most significant to my future practice. The former is
imperative for healthcare providers to deliver patient-centric care while EBP promotes the
use of the most recent scientific evidence to guide decision-making to improve patient
health outcomes, patient satisfaction, and nurses' morale.ReferencesAACN (n.d). Essentials
of Baccalaureate Education. Available at http://www.aacnnursing.org/Education-
Resources/AACN-EssentialsHarding, K. E., Porter, J., Horne-Thompson, A., Donley, E., &
Taylor, N. F. (2014). Not enough time or a low priority? Barriers to evidence-based practice
for allied health clinicians. The Journal of Continuing Education In The Health Professions,
34(4), 224-231.Massachusetts Department of Higher Education Nursing Initiative (2016).
Massachusetts Nurse of the Future Nursing Core Competencies©. Available at
http://www.mass.edu/nahi/documents/NOFRNCompetencies_updated_March2016.pdffirs
t_NR351_DISCUSSION_1Discussion-Nursing Core Competencies