NURS 6321 Week 3: Needs Assessment: External Factors That Influence Curriculum and Program Development, Part 2
NURS 6321 Week 3: Needs Assessment: External Factors That Influence Curriculum and Program Development, Part 2
NURS 6321: Curriculum Development, Assessment, and Evaluation | Week 3
Reflect back on your decision to pursue your master’s degree. When selecting potential schools, what factors were important to you? Why did you select Walden University over other colleges offering a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN)?
Don't use plagiarized sources. Get Your Custom Essay onNURS 6321 Week 3: Needs Assessment: External Factors That Influence Curriculum and Program Development, Part 2Just from $13/Page
For many students, the desire to attend a nationally accredited school plays a large part in their decision-making process. In general, graduating from a nationally accredited institution carries much value on a nurse’s résumé. Employers know that accredited institutions undergo rigorous processes to achieve and maintain the high quality standards set by accrediting bodies. Like many other institutions, Walden University recognizes the importance students and clinical settings place on accreditation status. As such, the Walden University School of Nursing, MSN program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).
This week, you explore how and why institutions undergo the accreditation process. You also explore how and why clinical settings might seek accreditation and certification through regulatory agencies.
Learning Objectives
Students will:
- Evaluate accrediting bodies and regulatory agencies
- Analyze external factors that impact curriculum development *
Discussion: Accrediting Bodies and Regulatory Agencies
Like a firework spreading out over the night sky, the history of accreditation overarches much of health care’s past. In the late 1800s, the emphasis on health care practices, procedures, and expectations was much like a fuse that propels a firework into the air. Uniformity of high quality standards was the new goal to reach. As this new goal ignited however, many different organizations and committees began to form, each branching out in its own direction. One association, the American Society of Superintendents of Training Schools of Nursing, pushed to equalize and elevate standards across all schools of nursing. Today, this association is known as the National League for Nursing (NLN), a specialized accrediting body for nursing programs. In 1913, another association, the American College of Surgeons (ACS), began to conduct on-site inspections of hospitals. Out of the 692 hospitals they visited, only 89 met their minimum quality standards. Like the NLN, the ACS continued to grow, later merging with what is known today as the Joint Commission.
In this Discussion, you explore the many accrediting bodies and regulatory agencies that accredit and certify academic and clinical settings.
To prepare:
- Review this week’s Learning Resources on accrediting bodies and the overarching accreditation process for academic settings.
- Review Chapter 2, “Curriculum Development and Approval Processes in Changing Educational Environments,” in the Keating text. Consider how regulatory agencies accredit and certify clinical settings. In addition, consider why a clinical setting might seek accreditation or certification.
- Consider the setting your team is investigating for your Course Project. Using the websites listed in this week’s Learning Resources, as well as your own independent research, identify the accrediting body or regulatory agency from which your setting did or could seek accreditation/certification from.
- Select three standards from this accrediting body or regulatory agency. Conduct a self-study to determine if the setting could or did meet the standards required by this body or agency.
By Day 3 – NURS 6321 Week 3: Needs Assessment: External Factors That Influence Curriculum and Program Development, Part 2
Post a brief description of the setting your team selected for your Course Project. Explain which accrediting body or regulatory agency this setting did or could seek accreditation/certification from and why. Identify the standards you selected, and explain if the setting could or did meet these outlined expectations. Justify your response by citing references to this week’s Learning Resources and current literature.
Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses.
By Day 6
Respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days using one or more of the following approaches:
- Ask a probing question, substantiated with additional background information, evidence or research.
- Offer and support an alternative perspective using readings from the classroom or from your own research in the Walden Library.
- Validate an idea with your own experience and additional research.
