Please answer each discussion question with about 150 words and cite 2 references.
Topic 3, Discussion Question #1
Discuss the correlation between nursing education and positive patient outcomes. Include current research that links patient safety outcomes to advanced degrees in nursing. Based on some real-life experiences, explain whether you agree or disagree with this research.
Topic 3, Discussion Question #2
Discuss the difference between a DNP and a PhD in nursing. Discuss which of these you would choose to pursue if you decide to continue your education to the doctoral level and explain why.
*(I would choose DNP because DNP is focused on clinical practice.) Trends and Issues in Today Healthcare Essay

Trends and Issues in Today’s Healthcare

DQ 1

The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health report of 2010 recommended increasing the number of nurses with a doctorate degree by 100% by the year 2020 (Hooper, 2016). Nursing education at higher levels means that the nurse acquires more competencies as well as knowledge and skills to make them more efficient. For instance, a baccalaureate nurse is better at evidence-based practice than an associate degree nurse (ADN). The reason is that the baccalaureate nurse has been taught about research and clinical inquiry that are the basis of evidence-based practice. It so happens that evidence-based practice or EBP is nursing practice that s premised n using only those interventions that have been proven to be effective scientifically (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2019). This proof is found in published scholarly evidence that is peer-reviewed. Without doubt, an intervention with evidence of proven efficacy will produce better patient outcomes than one that is just common practice without evidence of efficacy. This is where the correlation between nursing education and patient outcomes is found. The higher the level of nursing education, the better the patient outcomes; meaning that the correlation is a positive one.

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DQ2

The difference between a DNP (Doctor of Nursing Practice) and a PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) in nursing is that the DNP doctorate is more geared towards clinical practice for those who like seeing patients. On the other hand, the PhD doctorate is geared towards training one to become a faculty member and teach in institutions of higher learning. The two highest degrees in nursing are therefore not the same. Personally, if I were to pursue my nursing education to the highest level I would choose the DNP degree. Trends and Issues in Today Healthcare Essay  The reason for that is that I have always loved to care for patients and the DNP doctorate will give me that opportunity to continue practicing even at the highest level (McCauley et al., 2020; Newland, 2019). This will be even more satisfying if I am to practice in a full practice autonomy state that allows for autonomous practice for advanced practice registered nurses or APRNs.

References

Hooper, V.D. (2016). The Institute of Medicine report on the future of nursing: Where are we 5 years later? Journal of PeriAnesthesia Nursing, 31(5), 367-369. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jopan.2016.08.013

McCauley, L.A., Broome, M.E., Frazier, L., Hayes, R., Kurth, A., Musil, C.M., Norman, L.D., Rideout, K.H., & Villarruel, A.M. (2020). Doctor of nursing practice (DNP) degree in the United States: Reflecting, readjusting, and getting back on track. Nursing Outlook, 68(4), 494-503. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.outlook.2020.03.008

Melnyk, B.M., & Fineout-Overholt, E. (2019). Evidence-based practice in nursing & healthcare: A guide to best practice, 4^th ed. Wolters Kluwer.

Newland, J.A. (2019). Growth of the DNP degree: Promoting change and improving quality of care. The Nurse Practitioner, 44(4), 8. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NPR.0000554090.87523.b6 . Trends and Issues in Today Healthcare Essay