Health Policy and Advocacy
In this course students examine the economic, financial and political factors that influence the delivery of healthcare and consider policy reform through legal, regulatory, ethical, societal, and organizational contexts. Health Policy and Advocacy focuses on critiquing the policy process, critically thinking and assessing the influence of legislative and governmental influence on healthcare delivery, and applying emotional intelligence as a strategy to advocate and create change. The student will develop processes that influence, implement, and evaluate current policy and the role of government in healthcare delivery. Collaborative support and teamwork in health care venues will be stressed.
This course includes documentation of at least 80 hours of immersion towards the 1000 hours due during the DNP program.
Required Text Books:
Nurses Making Policy: From Bedside to Boardroom
ISBN: 978-0826198914
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th Edition) , 7th Edition
ISBN: 9781433832154
Welcome to Module 2 Week 2
Aug 24, 2020 8:19 PM
Motivation to Act; Follow Your Passion
Last week, in Module 1, we examined the difference between advocating for health policy directly effecting patients and the community versus advocating for the profession of nursing, and your thoughts on how the public or legislators might view each set of issues. In this module, you will explore how nurses can be motivated to advocate for a singular health care or professional issue because of personal experience or as a result of patient advocacy. Further, you will identify what health care or professional issue(s) you are passionate about and relay any advocacy actions you took to influence this issue. If you have not been involved in an advocacy action you will formulate what action you may take in the future to influence this issue. The idea is that you will be motivated to become a nurse health policy advocate by a single issue that is important to you. Start by reading Chapters 2 and 12 in your Patton, Zalon and Ludwick (2015). Nurses making policy: From bedside to boardroom textbook.
This Week’s Discussion Question:
Describe the history of the nursing profession as advocates for health policy and the community. Compare with one present day nursing leader you are acquainted with that demonstrates these same attributes.
This Week’s Assignment:
Please submit one APA formatted presentation (PowerPoint®, Prezi®, etc.) identifying and describing what health care or professional issue you are passionate about and relay any advocacy actions you took to influence this issue as well as what action you must follow in the future to evaluate if your efforts have had an impact on this issue. This policy change proposal could be with state Board of nursing, local boards, state representatives, or member of Congress/Senate. The assignment should have a minimum of four scholarly sources, in addition to the textbook.
For this assignment, create a Microsoft PowerPoint® or OpenOffice Impress® presentation of 20 slides total, include an introductory slide, a reference slide and 18 content slides with an audio explanation and detailed speaker notes on all content slides.
Please go to the Writing Center tab at the topic of the course, then click on Contents, and then Module 3: Assignments. Scroll to the bottom and review the tutorial called “Creating a Quality Power Point”.
Over the next few weeks, you will apply the concepts learned by collaborating with or at least contacting a policy maker about an issue that you think would advance nursing scope, practice or culture or improve patient care and outcomes in a positive way. You will be working on this same project over the next 5 weeks.
Additional Resources
American Nurses Association https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/advocacy/
Florence Nightingale https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/florence-nightingale-1
Patient Advocacy: Breaking Down Barriers and Challenging Decisions https://www.nursingtimes.net/clinical-archive/holistic-care/patient-advocacy-breaking-down-barriers-and-challenging-decisions-03-01-2017/
Patient Advocacy From the Clinical Nurses’ Viewpoint https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4958925/
Module 2: Assignment
Start by reading and following these instructions:
1. Quickly skim the questions or assignment below and the assignment rubric to help you focus.
2. Read the required chapter(s) of the textbook and any additional recommended resources. Some answers may require you to do additional research on the Internet or in other reference sources. Choose your sources carefully.
3. Consider the discussion and the any insights you gained from it.
4. Create your Assignment submission and be sure to cite your sources, use APA style as required, check your spelling.
Assignment:
Please submit one APA formatted presentation (PowerPoint®, Prezi®, etc.) identifying and describing what health care or professional issue you are passionate about and relay any advocacy actions you took to influence this issue as well as what action you must follow in the future to evaluate if your efforts have had an impact on this issue. This policy change proposal could be with state Board of nursing, local boards, state representatives, or member of Congress/Senate. The assignment should have a minimum of SIX scholarly sources, in addition to the textbook.
For this assignment, create a Microsoft PowerPoint® or OpenOffice Impress® presentation of 20 slides total, include an introductory slide, a reference slide and 18 content slides with an audio explanation and detailed speaker notes on all content slides.
Please go to the Writing Center tab at the topic of the course, then click on Contents, and then Module 3: Assignments. Scroll to the bottom and review the tutorial called “Creating a Quality Power Point”.
Over the next few weeks, you will apply the concepts learned by collaborating with or at least contacting a policy maker about an issue that you think would advance nursing scope, practice or culture or improve patient care and outcomes in a positive way. You will be working on this same project over the next 5 weeks.
Instructions
When you submit your assignment it goes through Turnitin, a plagiarism software, to be sure that your work is less than 20% duplicated from other sources unless otherwise noted. Take the time to correct it so the report verifying your work is less than 20% or as required by your instructor. You may edit your paper and resubmit it up to three times or per your instructor’s directions. Make sure you follow the RUBRIC below strictly in all the assignment to score the highest point.
SCORING RUBRIC Criteria
Does Not Meet 0%
Approaches 70%
Meets 80%
Exceeds 100%
Criterion Score
Content Weight: 30%
0 points
Topic is inappropriate to assignment, inaccurate understanding of concepts, unclear and difficult to understand; does not address many assignment requirements. Information has weak or no connection to the assignment topic.
21 points
Topic is mostly covered and appropriate to assignment, but does not adequately demonstrate accurate understanding of concepts; mostly clear and understandable; lacks some of the requirements of the assignment description and/or provides little detail; Information relates to the main topic, but few details and/or examples are given.
24 points
Topic is covered completely and appropriate to assignment; overview of key concept dimensions is evident; clear and understandable; addresses all of the requirements of the assignment description, with adequate attention to detail.
30 points
In-depth coverage of topic; outstanding clarity and explanation of concepts demonstrated in information presented; approaches assignment with depth and breadth, without redundancy, using clear and focused details.
/ 30
Organization Weight: 25%
0 points
Organization is confusing and interferes with reader’s ability to follow ideas. Weak or no introduction of topic or purpose is unclear, weak, or missing. Conclusion lacks a summary of topic, or is missing or irrelevant.
17.5 points
Ideas are sometimes disorganized or irrelevant; Flow is sometimes choppy; somewhat clear organization. Basic introduction that states topic but is presented in an uninteresting way. Conclusion contains basic summary of topic without final concluding ideas, may inappropriately introduces new information.
20 points
Structures ideas in a coherent, organized order that has good flow and an obvious framework. Proficient introduction that is interesting and states topic. Conclusion contains good summary of topic with credible concluding ideas and introduces no new information.
25 points
Exceptionally clear, logical, mature, and thorough organization permitting smooth flow of ideas; Introduction that grabs interest of reader and states topic in clear, unambiguous terms. Excellent concluding summary with succinct and precise ideas that impact reader.
/ 25
Logic/Argument Weight: 15%
0 points
Demonstrates little logical reasoning for the claims and thoughts within assignment; Many claims are weak or illogical.
10.5 points
Lacks some logical reasoning for the claims and thoughts within the assignment; Some claims are weak.
12 points
Uses solid logical reasoning for the claims and thoughts within the assignment.
15 points
Provides exemplary logical reasoning for the claims and thoughts within the assignment.
/ 15
Support Weight: 20%
0 points
Lacks support; Uses poor sources for references; Citations lack credibility, relevance, or academic quality or are not current; Does not meet the minimum number of required citations in assignment description. APA format and style are not evident.
14 points
Provides weak support or not enough support; Citations are not consistently credible, current, relevant or academic; Meets the minimum number of required citations in assignment description Missing APA elements; in-text citations, where necessary, are used but formatted inaccurately and not referenced.
16 points
Provides sufficient support with credible, current, relevant academic citations; Meets the minimum number of required citations in assignment description. ; In-text citations and a reference page are present with few format errors. Mechanics of writing are reflective of APA style.
20 points
Provides very strong support from credible, current, relevant, academic citations; Meets or exceeds the minimum number of required citations in assignment description. Accurate citations and references are presented. No APA errors are evident.
/ 20
Quality of Written Communication Weight: 10%
0 points
Style and voice inappropriate or do not address given audience, purpose, etc. Word choice is excessively redundant, clichéd, and unspecific. Inconsistent grammar, spelling, punctuation, and paragraphing. Surface errors are pervasive enough that they impede communication of meaning.
7 points
Style and voice are somewhat appropriate to given audience and purpose. Word choice is often unspecific, generic, redundant, and clichéd. Repetitive mechanical errors distract the reader. Inconsistencies in language, sentence structure, and/or word choice are present.
8 points
Style and voice are appropriate to the given audience and purpose. Word choice is specific and purposeful, and somewhat varied throughout. Minimal mechanical or typographical errors are present, but are not overly distracting to the reader. Correct sentence structure and audience-appropriate language are used.
10 points
Style and voice are not only appropriate to the given audience and purpose, but also show originality and creativity. Word choice is specific, purposeful, dynamic and varied. Free of mechanical and typographical errors. A variety of sentence structures and effective figures of speech are used. Writer is clearly in command of standard, written, academic English.
/ 10
Please Read: CourseHero & Academic Dishonesty
• Hello, Aspen Students.
We hope your courses are going well and you are enjoying the learning at Aspen. As you complete your coursework, it is critical to remember the importance of academic integrity. Integrity is founded in having a moral and ethical code that guides one’s decisions, especially with regard to the concept of honesty. One aspect of academic integrity deals with doing one’s own work and not participating in behaviors that promote deceit or plagiarism, including behaviors that aid others in plagiarizing. The University has clear policies on academic dishonesty and plagiarism, which everyone should review now: https://images.aspen.edu/wp/uploads/2020/04/April-2020-Aspen-University-Catalog.pdf
The purpose of this message is to help you be aware of some potentially risky academic behaviors which could put your education in jeopardy. Engaging in academically dishonest behaviors, directly or indirectly, can result in a Code of Conduct violation and possible removal from the University. We want to emphasize this to every student because we sincerely care about your success and do not want any student to compromise their own integrity, morals or ethics in order to avoid the expectations of academic honesty.
We are aware of a particular website where Aspen students are engaging in academically dishonest behavior. The website is called CourseHero. CourseHero disguises itself as a ‘tutoring’ site or they offer a ‘scholarship’ if a student uploads papers to the site. Similar sites exist and should also be avoided as well, such as studyblue.com, cramster.com, koofers.com, and gradeguru.com. Additionally, these kinds of sites are tricking you into uploading your Aspen assignments and then profiting from selling your papers to others. By sharing your papers or using those artifacts on the site, you are directly committing a violation of the academic integrity policy and are at risk of a Code of Conduct incident. For your reference, here is the link to some of these violations- https://www.coursehero.com/sitemap/schools/80542-Aspen-University/. Faculty, peers, school administrators and staff (even family, friends and employers) can all see every student who is participating in this academically dishonest and unethical behavior. Is it worth jeopardizing your education or public image? How will you perform successfully in the real world if you never do your own work? If you share your work with others to use for plagiaristic acts, how does this nurture your moral and ethical core?
We want to be very clear that this is a direct violation of Aspen’s academic integrity and plagiarism policies. If you have participated in this behavior, we ask that you take this opportunity to remove the content, demonstrate that it was an error in judgment and prevent any subsequent action by the University. To remove your assignments, please follow these directions: How do I remove a document I previously uploaded?
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your academic advisor for advice and guidance. To all the rest of you, thank you for upholding the importance of academic honesty and refusing to participate in these kinds of behaviors. Good luck in your courses and Aspen on!
• 7th Edition of the APA Manual
Posted Jul 6, 2020 8:00 AM
Dear Students & Faculty,
In October of 2019, the American Psychological Association (APA) moved to a new edition of the APA Manual. The APA Manual is the formatting and style of writing that Aspen University utilizes for all of the papers submitted.
On June 22, 2020, Aspen University will officially begin using the new 7th edition. However, we know that it may take some time to purchase the new edition, 9781433832185, and therefore will have a grace period through the end of 2020 to make the switch. This means that through the rest of 2020 you may use either the 6th or the 7th edition of the APA Manual. Be sure to only use one version in your assignment submissions.
Some of the key changes in the 7th edition are:
• No more Running head on the title page
• Title page includes title, name of author, affiliation of author (Aspen University), course number, instructor name, and assignment due date
• First-person perspective is now allowed
• URLs are linked
• The use of the singular “they”
• Correct gender identification terms, cisgender women or transgender female
• One space between a period and the beginning of the next sentence
• No periods after abbreviations
• Three or more authors use – et al. from the very first citation
• The words “Retrieved from” are no longer required in references
• If the publisher is the same name as the author, leave publisher off completely to avoid repetition
• Location is no longer needed in the reference
• Up to 20 authors are listed in any one reference
• Reference heading is now in bold
For a more thorough look at the requirements in the 7th edition, please go to the Writing Center or APA Style.
• Social Media Warning
Posted Jun 22, 2020 9:39 AM
Dear Students,
Everyone at Aspen hopes all is well with you and your loved ones. We want to bring to your attention several recent emails we have received from outsiders who have the agenda of going to an individual’s Facebook account and searching for content that they do not like and/or instigating an argument around heated topics, with the intention of screenshotting the individual’s posts. Next, they search through the individual’s Facebook page to gather personal information (where the individual went to school, current and past employers, family, and friends). Once they have this personal info that is freely provided in most people’s Facebook accounts, they begin sending the unflattering screenshots to every school, employer, family, and friend of the individual, in an attempt to shame them for their personal posts in their personal account. Several outsiders have contacted us after provoking someone who put ‘Aspen University’ as their school affiliation. They sent us screenshots of different student posts that made unfavorable comments about sensitive topics.
While your personal posts on personal Facebook accounts are protected under the First Amendment’s Free Speech statement, certain types of comments are not protected, such as those below.
• Threats to harm university staff, students or property,
• Threats of violence between students who attend Aspen, especially when there is a high probability of the two students encountering one another (e.g., same city; attend ground programs),
• Inappropriate posts in any Aspen-centric systems (e.g., D2L classroom, Aspen Facebook)
Aspen supports the First Amendment of Free Speech. This right of all citizens also means that people can use their free speech to say and post hurtful, inappropriate and shameful comments for all the world to see. So, beware! That same world may use your own words against you. Your digital footprints are forever. Your posts, sometimes emotional in the moment, may reappear and haunt you in your future. Employers now use your social media sites as part of the hiring process. More importantly, others may use your social media posts against you now by contacting your network and sending them screenshots of your ‘unfavorable’ personal posts. While we all have the right to speak our mind freely on any topic, we should be mindful of the words we choose and the impression they leave. Just as vitally, we should reflect on the impact that our words can have on the feelings of others, especially on very sensitive topics. It can either be negative or positive. We choose. It is just as easy to type kind words as it is to write hateful words.