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2010 End of Year Reflections & A Look Ahead

I believe it is important to look back at the challenges and successes of the outgoing year to set goals and plan for the new year. I partly attribute this to my DNP program as we have been required to reflect on each semester and completed year of the program.

To say that health care was a hot topic in 2010 certainly is an understatement. We witnessed the passing of historic legislation that will help shape how care will be delivered in the years to come. I am hopeful to see better coordinated and more efficient care with an emphasis on preventative services and screenings. I am hopeful that all of the members of the multidisciplinary team refine and hone their collaborative skills so that we may better communicate and work together to provide the best possible care to our patients.

2010 saw nurse practitioners thrust into the spotlight as one possible solution for the influx of newly insured patients coming into the system. The discussions have been interesting to follow and it is apparent that many still have a poor understanding of the NP role. The IOM provided the current state of the profession and lays the framework to a road of barrier-free NP practice. I hope that we are finally able to move past the turf battles and patronization of the NP role to focus on the multidimensional aspects of patient care.

On a personal note, my DNP group and I saw our systematic review protocol accepted and published on the Joanna Briggs Institute's website. Looking ahead, I will graduate with my DNP in 2011 and will continue to incorporate those new layers of knowledge into my daily practice. Unfortunately, I still have a significant amount of work to complete before May but I look forward to soon finishing up our systematic review/meta-analysis and the implementation/evaluation of group medical visits in actual practice for patients with diabetes.

I am so happy that more and more people are finding and reading this blog. When I started the blog 3 years ago, I didn't know where I would go with it. Now 3 years later, I believe that I accomplished in part of what I set out to do: advocate for the NP role, correct many of the published inaccuracies and offer a NP voice on healthcare issues. I will continue doing this in 2011 and look forward to the successes and challenges that it brings.

Thank you for reading & Happy New Year!
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Comments

NPO said…
Keep advocating for current NP's and future NP's like me.

Good informational blog, and mentally, physically and spiritually may 2011 be a prosperous year.
December 29, 2010 at 10:36 PM
Anonymous said…
Congratulations on the publication of your systematic review. That is a great accomplishment. This is the type of contribution that the DNP can make to quality health care. Rose Theroux, PhD, WHNP-BC
December 30, 2010 at 11:38 AM
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