The benchmark assesses the following competencies:

1.4 Participate in health care policy development to influence nursing practice and health care.

Research public health issues on the “Climate Change” or “Topics and Issues” pages of the American Public Health Association (APHA) website. Investigate a public health issue related to an environmental issue within the U.S. health care delivery system and examine its effect on a specific population.

Write a 750-1,000-word policy brief that summarizes the issue, explains the effect on the population, and proposes a solution to the issue.

Follow this outline when writing the policy brief:

1. Describe the policy health issue. Include the following information: (a) what population is affected, (b) at what level does it occur (local, state, or national), and (c) evidence about the issues supported by resources.
2. Create a problem statement.
3. Provide suggestions for addressing the health issue caused by the current policy. Describe what steps are required to initiate policy change. Include necessary stakeholders (government officials, administrator) and budget or funding considerations, if applicable.
4. Discuss the impact on the health care delivery system.

Include three peer-reviewed sources and two other sources to support the policy brief.

Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, An abstract is not required.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion. 

The Clinical Evaluation Tool (CET) lists five core concepts with bulleted illustrations of each concept. Caring, nursing process, comfort & pain, quality & safety, cultural awareness, and health promotion are displayed throughout the CET to demonstrate inclusion of  University’s philosophical framework. 

Instructions

The Professional student will complete the CET at midterm and final. For each evaluation period, the student will provide an overall summary statement AND a meaningful, substantive, narrative account under each core concept. This narrative will include specific clinical examples which support the “fully met” or “partially met” concept. The clinical instructor will review the completed CET and provide summary comments and added feedback as necessary. The final electronic document will be retained for the student’s academic file. The CET will be returned to the student for resubmission if it is not completed with sufficient detail.

  

Midterm Evaluation 

Date:   Pass/Fail:

Student Summary statement of overall performance, including strengths, areas for improvement, and goals for the remaining weeks:

Student Signature:

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Final Evaluation 

Date:  Pass/Fail:

Student Summary statement of overall performance, including strengths, and areas on which to focus for the future:

Student Signature:

Core Concepts

I. Incorporate effective modes of communication with patients and other healthcare providers

The professional role transition student:

· Incorporates personal and professional caring attributes in the delivery of care (caring)

· Displays confidence and evaluates interactions in communicating with faculty, staff, healthcare team members, patients and families (nursing process)

· Demonstrates competence in using a variety of resources to facilitate communication with diverse patient populations, including those with limited English proficiency and health literacy (cultural awareness)

Midterm:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

Final:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

  

II. Assimilate professional behaviors that adhere to standards of practice and legal/ethical codes

The professional role transition student:

· Integrates professional standards of diagnosis, assessment, outcome identification, planning, implementation, and evaluation into delivery of care (caring; nursing process)

· Advocates for effective pain management (comfort & pain)

· Arrives on time and prepared for clinical displaying a professional appearance (quality & safety)

· Integrates professional accountability and follow through (quality & safety)

Midterm:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

Final:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

  

III. Engage in collaborative practices with the healthcare team

The professional role transition student:

· Collaborates with appropriate interdisciplinary team members to plan, deliver, and evaluate care in a timely manner (nursing process)

· Advocates for informed patient participation in care (quality & safety)

· Collaborates with patients and families to achieve mutually agreed upon goals (cultural awareness)

Midterm:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

Final:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

  

IV. Evaluate evidence-based practice (EBP) in guiding professional nursing

The professional role transition student:

· Evaluates use of EBP into own professional practice (nursing process)

· Analyzes and individualizes evidence-based plan of care (quality & safety)

Midterm:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

Final:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

  

V. Incorporate critical thinking in the application of professional nursing

The professional role transition student:

· Integrates the physiology, pathophysiology, pharmacotherapeutic, spiritual, and sociocultural knowledge in designing, implementing, and evaluating patient plan of care (nursing process; comfort & pain)

· Applies technology and information management tools to support safe processes of care (quality & safety)

· Prioritizes patient’s health promotion needs (health promotion)

Midterm:

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence:

Final: 

This concept is: (5) fully met ___ (3) partially met ___ (1) not met ___

Student/Instructor comments and supportive evidence: