Reflective Journal Due April 8th
This week we learned about strategic planning, which I oddly enjoyed. I did research on what nursing needs are in Utah and what healthcare providers are needed in Utah Valley. I found a lot of information that I would like to keep in this journal:
The current Master Degrees I found it Utah are the following:
- Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo
- M.S. Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)
- Independence University (merged with Stevens-Henager College) in Salt Lake
- M.S. in Health Services-Health Promotion
- M.S. in Nurse Education
- M.S. in Nursing Administration
- University of Utah (U of U) in Salt Lake
- M.S. in Nursing Informatics
- M.S. in Nursing Education
- M.S. in Care Management
- M.S. in Gerontology
- Utah Valley University (UVU) in Orem
- M.S. in Nursing Education
- Weber State University in Ogden
- M.S. in Nursing Education
- M.S. in Nursing Administration
- Westminster College in Salt Lake
- M.S. Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)
- M.S. in Nursing Education
- M.S. in Nurse Anesthesia (MSNA)
- Western Governors University (Salt Lake)
- Nursing Education
- Nursing Leadership and Management
http://www.msnprogramsonline.org/utah-msn-programs/
Different Master Degree Nursing Jobs
- Advanced Nurse Practitioners: They can certify/specialize as nurse midwives, pediatrics, family care, nurse anesthetist, gerontology, or other specific illnesses such as cancer or Alzheimer’s.
- Nursing Administration- includes long-term nurse managers, nursing supervisors with additional responsibilities, nursing directors, head of nursing.
- Nursing Education: includes work as teachers, instructors, clinical education managers, and professors at a variety of institutions.
- Research/Informatics: Assist with assessment and logistics of nursing and health care institutions. Job descriptions include scholarly research, data evaluation, and statistics. They can also study personnel guidelines, hospital procedures, staffing credentials, and administrative processing. Nursing informatic coordinators set up institutional goals and objectives, including implementing and maintaining technology systems.
- Consulting: A certified legal nurse consultant works with attorneys, private businesses, government agencies, or insurance companies to assist with projects that include legal issues, health delivery costs, and standards of care. Community nurse consultants offer advice to care centers and nursing homes. Occupational consultants focus on managing stress, exercise, health, and ergonomics. Management consultants aid with risk management, communications, costs, and certification. Specialists in specific health conditions can advise on issues such as diabetes, wound care, and autism. Consultants are often independent contractors working varied hours and schedules.
Utah Needs- Nurses in General
According to Teresa Garrett (2017), the Project Director for the Utah Nursing Consortium, Utah is in need of more nurses because “Utah has the fastest-growing elderly population, the youngest population, and the lowest death rate in the country.” Because of our population growth and medical needs due to 25 percent of the population being obese or having been told they have high blood pressure. The number of individuals with diabetes rises each year as well; these medical conditions can be chronic and cause other medical problems. Nurses are in demand in Utah due to the growing population and chronic illnesses.
Garrett (2017) also states that health care employers report over 1,200 vacancies for RN positions. Utah’s colleges turn away over 1,000 qualified applicants to their programs every year. Utah’s nurses are aging. Forty-eight percent of the workforce is over the age of 45 years, so they are nearing retirement. More nurses are needed to replace retiring nurses.
Garrett (2017) states that “a recent study showed that counties with higher RN-to-population ratios are healthier, with lower reports of poor health, and higher participation in healthcare prevention activities.” The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that there will be 1.2 million unfilled nursing positions nationwide by the year 2022. Garrett says in order to decrease the deficit, we can educate more nurses each year.
Utah Needs- Cardiologist, Internal Medicine, Neurologists and Gerontologists, Primary Care Providers
According to Braley Dodson (2016), with the Daily Herald, says that in Utah County there is 1 primary care provider for every 2,281 people. Needs for Utah Valley include cardiologists, internal medicine subspecialists, neurologists, and gerontologists. Mental Health specialists are also in demand in Utah Valley. A new Intermountain Healthcare hospital will be built in Spanish Fork by 2020 that will need to be staffed.
Dodson interviewed Kimball Anderson, chief executive officer at Timpanogos Regional Hospital. His concern was that there won’t be enough primary care physicians to care for the population. Another concern is recruiting providers from outside the state. The area can be attractive, with many outdoor recreational opportunities, strong state economy, high birthrates and a healthy population. However, the area is considered rural and there are differences in compensation. The culture in Utah Valley is unique as well. Those who have been raised in the area may enjoy it more so and would be willing to stay in the area, but not all do for various reasons. One reason is that Utah salaries are less than many states. Medical schools aren’t producing as many doctors. Nurse Practitioners, along with technology, can be used to ease the burden of primary care physicians.
Suggested Master Programs for Utah Valley University and Advanced Care Planning
After reviewing the current demands in Utah and Utah Valley, I believe the best Masters Programs for Utah Valley would be Masters in Nursing Education and Advanced Nurse Practitioner Programs. There is a shortage of ASN and BSN nurses and Universities and colleges in the area continually have to turn away qualified students due to having a cap on the students they can bring into the program. Advanced Nurse Practitioner programs can help ease the burden of primary care providers and specialists in the area.
In order to reach this “Utopia” of having enough nurses and providers in Utah Valley to adequately care for the community, Utah Valley University needs to qualify for an additional M.S. Nursing Program(s). UVU already has an M.S. in Nursing Education, but needs to go through the formal process of approval for an Advanced Nurse Practitioner Program. They need to hire trained staffing for the Advanced Nurse Practitioner Program(s). They need to research curriculum for such a program(s). They need to make sure they have classrooms available and the technology needed for training. They need to make sure local hospitals and facilities will support clinical hours for the students. They need to make sure a budget is made. They need to apply for funding for their program. They need to send out surveys to find out the interest of such a program and if they prefer in class, online, or Hybrid classes, etc. They need to advertise the program. They need to make scholarship funding entities aware of the program. They need to figure out how many students they can accept each semester. They need to figure out the acceptance qualifications and acceptance/interview process.
I’ve written a lot here. I feel like we can build on it with an exact Plan with time frames. I wanted to know what programs you all think would be in the best interest of the community first.
References
Dodson, B. (2016). Utah County facing doctor, nurse shortage. Retrieved from https://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/utah-county-facing-doctor-nurse-shortage/article_35993be2-8da9-5981-a7d8-37583e74eb23.html
Garrett, T. (2017). Utah nursing consortium: Healing Utah’s nursing gap. Retrieved from https://slchamber.com/utah-nursing-consortium/
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I learned how to strategically plan through this exercise of figuring out what master’s nursing programs may be most beneficial for UVU to have. After reading several of my teammates posts, I decided that a Family Nurse Practitioner program would be useful. I also still think that the MSN in nursing education is important as well because we need more teachers in order to teach the community nursing since nursing is in demand. Not only are nurse educators important for getting jobs at universities and colleges, but there are nurse educators in hospitals as well.
The other exercise we did was strategically plan a BSN curriculum. I thought this was a good activity because it made me reflect on what I wish I’d learned in nursing school before graduating. When I started working at the hospital I found myself saying a few times, “I wish I learned this in school.”
Strategically planning happens in the daily things we do at work as well, such as prioritizing the needs of patients and their cares. This skill is definitely useful in nursing and for life outside of work.
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