1

Professional Roles Development Plan

Delia J. Benitez

College of Nursing, University of Houston

NURS 3310 Professional Role Development & Practice Issues

Professor Tracy McManaman-Bridges

November 16, 2020

Professional Roles Development Plan

Nursing is a profession that has continued to expand over the years. In this field, there are

baccalaureate nurses, vocational nurses and associate nurses. Although the three share the same

four roles – member of the profession, provider of patient-centered care, patient safety advocate

and member of the healthcare team – each has different clinical judgements and behavior areas

in those four roles and a different level of preparation. A Bachelor of Science in Nursing

prepares nurses to have critical thinking skills, communicate with other health care professionals,

use evidence-based practice and provide care to patients, families, populations and communities.

Member of the Profession

The baccalaureate nurse (BSN), as a member of the profession, has the duty of

advocating for the patient and the profession at all times. The term “professional” calls for one to

set a professional identity and remain accountable of how that image is being portrayed (Masters,

2018). Professional nursing means that a nurse must have strong critical thinking skills, great

communication, and assessment skills (AACN, 2008). Professional nursing also requires ethical

behavior and being involved in policy advocacy relating to the health care system (AACN,

2008). In addition, nurses are also responsible for continuing and progressing their learning. It is

certain that nurses hold a lot of responsibilities which is why they are held to very high

expectations. BSN’s are required to complete continuing education and participate on

community, state, and national professional organizations such as the American Nurses

Association.
3

It’s very important for a nurse to build critical thinking skills. When a nurse visits a

patient and is preparing to perform a physical assessment, it is important that nurses use critical

reasoning in order to collect all the necessary data to be able to decide on a nursing diagnosis. In

addition to having critical thinking skills, nurses should always offer equal care and treatment to

all patients no matter the gender, race or ethnicity.

A BSN differs from a vocational and an associate nurse when it comes to the care they

offer to their patients. Vocational and associate nurses aim to provide quality care to patients and

families. While baccalaureate nurses aim to provide quality care to patients and families, they go

even further than that and aim to reach their care to populations and communities as well (Texas

BON, 2011). This has a further impact because it is aiming to improve and promote better health

care beyond a patient’s room.

Member of the Health Care Team

A BSN is a leader in the health care team. BSN’s are designers, coordinators, and

managers of care (AACN, 2018). These nurses “will have the knowledge and authority to

delegate tasks to other healthcare personnel, as well as to supervise and evaluate the personnel”

(AACN, 2018). Many tasks cannot be completed alone in which many cases it is important to

have a team. Having a team is beneficial because it consists of multiple opinions, different ideas

and diversity. A health care team could consist of a variety of health care workers such as a

clinical leader/registered nurse, unlicensed assistive personnel and a licensed practical nurse

(Masters, 2018). Having multiple health care professionals in a team always calls for them to

work collaboratively and achieve whatever goals are set for the patient. An example of how a

health care team can work collaboratively is that unlicensed assistive personnel might have to
4

perform tasks such as having to leave to get needed blood for a patient. A licensed practical

nurse might come into the patient’s room to perform vital signs. The clinical leader would be

able to administer medications and would communicate with “physicians and bedside staff to

facilitate any needed changes in the plan of care; and ensure the practice protocols are being

followed…” (Stachowiak, M., et al., 2013).

Several differences exist in the vocational, associate and baccalaureate degree when it

comes to improvement in the health care of patients. Vocational nurses only participate in

activities that focus on improving the health care of patients and families (Texas BON, 2011).

Associate nurses monitor and promote quality and access to health care for patients and families

(Texas BON, 2011). On the other hand, baccalaureate nurses consider many different factors

such as cost, confidentiality, effectiveness and efficiency of care when using multiple referral

resources and this is aimed to be given to the patient, the family, populations and communities

(Texas BON, 2011).

Provider of Patient Centered Care

A baccalaureate nurse is expected to display professionalism and continue learning to

increase their knowledge and skills, but they are also expected to provide the best care possible

to each of their patients. Patient centered care “requires a complete organizational shift from a

model focused on providers to one focused on patients, in which their needs and desires drive

how care is organized and delivered” (Kennedy, 2014). Nurses are always aiming to provide the

best comfort and support to all of their patients while staying at the hospital because this can

have an effect on the patient during their stay and when they finally get to leave. Patient centered

care means making the patient top priority by meeting all of their needs and preferences,
5

ensuring that they are safe and away from harm, letting them know they are in control and aware

of their own medical information and establishing clear communication with other healthcare

professionals involved (Masters, 2018).

A great way of demonstrating patient centered care is when admitting a new patient,

nurses must start off by establishing a friendly, trust-worthy relationship. The patient has to feel

safe and have trust with their assigned nurse. If there is a language barrier present, for example,

providing patient centered care means calling for an interpreter to be able to establish clear

communication. This allows the patient to be aware of everything that is going on and still feel in

control.

A baccalaureate nurse differs from a vocational and an associate nurse when performing

assessment and goal planning. A vocational and an associate nurse either reports data or analyzes

it and focuses on the patient and the families. A baccalaureate nurse on the other hand,

synthesizes comprehensive assessment data meaning they don’t just state what they see but

rather try to really understand what their findings mean. Once again, they also structure their

plans of care aimed to help not only the patient and the family, but the populations and

community as well (Texas BON, 2011).

Patient Safety Advocate

Nurses are expected to use their voice and position to be able to advocate for all patients.

In order to provide the best care, there has to be policies and systems set in place. Nurses have to

remain as involved as possible when given the opportunity to be able to accomplish all of their

goals. They are responsible for being prepared for any ethical dilemma (AACN, 2018). It’s

important for the nurse to make the patient their first priority no matter what. It is also important
6

for the nurse to ensure that the patient is receiving accurate and concise information in order for

the patient to make an informed decision (Masters, 2018). Healthcare providers have to involve

research findings along with other evidence when choosing plan of care and actually

implementing it (AACN, 2018).

This is demonstrated by nurses when new technology is introduced. Hospitals are

constantly having technological improvements and it is important for nurses to be up to date and

learning how to handle new technology in order to be able to provide good and safe care to their

patients. Science is evolving every day and it is a nurse’s responsibility to educate themselves

and adapt to new findings (AACN, 2018).

There are several differences within the vocational, associate and baccalaureate degree

when it comes to the goals and outcome planning to reduce patient risks. Vocational nurses are

there to only assist during this process whereas associate and baccalaureate nurses are there to

actually formulate the goals and outcomes. However, the difference between an associate and a

baccalaureate nurse is, while they both formulate goals and outcomes to reduce patient risks, a

baccalaureate nurse also formulates theoretical analysis and is not only aiming to reduce patient

risks, but also community risks. BSN’s would be involved in actually writing the policies and

testing the evidence with research.

Professional Roles Development Plan

The Differentiated Essential Competencies provides a framework for each of the degrees

and what is expected from each type of nurse in the roles they play. The Essentials of

Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice outlines specifically what it is to be a

professional nurse and how it differs. Overall, there are several different types of nurses, all

whom have to follow the essentials to receive licensure, however, they obtain different levels of

education and differ in their scope of practice.

Reference

American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2008). The Essentials of Baccalaureate

Education for Professional Nursing

Practice. https://www.aacnnursing.org/Portals/42/Publications/BaccEssentials08.pdf

Kennedy, M. (2014). EDITORIAL: Giving Patients What They Need and Want. 

The American Journal of Nursing, 114(7), 7-7. Retrieved November 13, 2020, from

http://www.jstor.org/stable/24466549

Masters, K. (Ed.). (2018). Role development in professional nursing practice (5th ed.).

Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett.

Stachowiak, M., & Bugel, M. (2013). The Clinical Nurse Leader and the Case Manager:

Are Both Roles Needed? The American Journal of Nursing, 113(1), 59-63. Retrieved

November 13, 2020, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/23461377

Texas Board of Nursing. (2011). Differentiated Essential Competencies of Graduates

of Texas Nursing Programs Texas Board of Nursing.

https://www.bon.texas.gov/pdfs/differentiated_essential_competencies-2010.pdf