ANPD believes no matter your role in the practice of nursing professional development (NPD), you belong in our community. That’s why our Specialty Spotlight series is highlighting members furthering NPD  in unique and invaluable ways. Today, the spotlight is on NPD Department Manager Jessica Reed, MSN, RN, CNOR, NPDA-BC, and her focus on utilizing the NPD Scope & Standards of Practice.

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Can you describe your career journey, and how you ended up in your current role?

I began my nursing career in 2007 with a Bachelor of Science degree in nursing, starting in the operating room (OR) and transitioning to the cardiovascular operating rooms (CVOR) after a year. In the CVOR, I specialized in circulating and scrubbing for open heart, thoracic, and vascular surgeries. My passion for mentoring and education led me to pursue a master’s degree in nursing education, which I completed in 2015.

Balancing both acute care and academia, I served as the unit educator for the CVOR, cath lab, endoscopy, and interventional radiology areas, as well as an adjunct clinical instructor for senior-level students in the acute inpatient care setting. I then advanced to the role of service line lead nursing professional development (NPD) practitioner for perioperative services, where I also led a perioperative nursing clinical group at a local university. Two years ago, I transitioned into my current role as the NPD department manager.

What does an average day in your position look like?

My average day is all about engaging with leaders and the NPD team to deliver top-notch education products to our learners. As a formal leader, I've had to shift from hands-on content creation to overseeing the entire department's workload. Before, I was directly involved in curating and building content. Now, my role is more about strategic oversight. This means I spend my time assessing who is best suited for each task based on their strengths, evaluating current workload, and then assign the tasks. I support my team throughout with coaching and feedback. If necessary, I also refocus the team to ensure our standards are met. It's a shift from doing the work myself to empowering my team to excel.

Communication is a major aspect of a typical day. Whether it's through meetings, e-mails, phone calls, or even quick chats in the hallway, staying connected with key parties to collaborate and my team is key. It ensures everyone is aligned and working towards our common goals.

How do you apply the NPD Scope & Standards of Practice in your role?

I apply the NPD Scope & Standards of Practice in the way I set expectations and goals for my team. I set our annual department goals through alignment with organization goals and the professional growth of my team members. Our organization releases the annual priorities for the year and then I lead my team through gathering assessment data, such as quality metrics, and analyzing the data to diagnose education needs.  For example, we may have an overarching goal to reduce infections in the organization. We then gather assessment data such as quality metrics, national nursing organizations’ best practices, and observation of clinical practice. Then based on need I create a goal to provide X number education products based on service line or unit needs.  This targeted and informed approach makes our education relevant to the practice area of the learners while still valuable to the organization. Their professional growth goal is then to identify the outcome of their specific service line education offerings in SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relative, time-bound) format and then perform the outcome measurement after implementation. I identify areas within NPD practice where my team is needing or seeking growth through my rounding sessions with them. We proceed to address those at team meetings, by watching recorded webinars, or by incorporating the topic into our annual department goals.

I also incorporate the NPD Scope & Standards of Practice into our standard of practice (SOP) for project development — where we are identifying the gap, learning needs, and outcomes for every project.  It is also represented in the meeting agenda templates where the agenda is divided into “inputs, throughputs, outputs, and feedback loop.” By using the NPD language in our daily work, it allows the team to easily see how their work aligns with the Scope & Standards.

What is a professional achievement you are proud of?

I am proud of my achievement of advanced NPD certification. The portfolio submission showcasing my application of the scope and standards in my work was a labor of love and it felt great to receive the “Congratulations!” email.  My mentor from the Leadership Academy texted me to congratulate me and that made me feel recognized far more than the certificate on my wall.

What challenges do you navigate in this position?

I navigate the challenges of demonstrating value of NPD practice and helping other leaders see how the gap can be caused by other factors outside of “education.”  It is a balance to show your value while also saying “no” when asked to provide education products. I try to emphasize how when we do say “yes,” we can demonstrate and communicate outcome achievement to leaders. This builds our reputation as the department they want at the table, because they know we are effective in our work.   

For example, over the last year we identified an increased number of calls to our rapid response team for peripheral IV starts. The initial request from nursing stakeholders was to have the NPDs check off every new nurse on peripheral IV sticks on a real patient during orientation. My initial response was, “no, we are not going to check off every new nurse.” Instead, I sought clarity on this gap by asking for more data of which units were calling, during what shift, and how often ultrasounds were being used to obtain a successful stick. After data collection, we determined it was medical surgical units, night shift, and ultrasound was only being used about 20% of the time. This informed the NPD department that we needed to focus PIV start training on med surg units since the IV start they were calling for were not difficult sticks. We implemented an IV specialist program, which bundled our existing ultrasound training with a clinical experience, and required evidence of daily practice for two successful PIV starts on the med surg units last year. This resulted increased skill and confidence in regular PIV starts on the med surg unit as well as increase the pool of ultrasound trained nurses throughout the hospital the staff could call before calling the rapid response nurse. There was a 46% overall decrease in calls to the rapid response team within six months. No additional time was required in training or by the NPD department and the rapid response teams saved productive time spent on IV calls.  We were able to say no to the initial request and show our value in how we can target actual practice gaps.

What advice do you have for NPD professionals looking to find a similar career path?

Don't hesitate to put yourself out there! Volunteer for committees, submit abstracts, and apply for Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval. Embrace every opportunity, even if you feel unprepared. The experience and growth you'll gain are invaluable.

Participating in an evidence-based practice (EBP) or leadership program might seem daunting, but it's worth the effort. If time is a concern, start small. Dedicate just five minutes a day to your development. When you arrive at work, resist the urge to check your email first. Instead, read that journal article flagged in your email, that chapter you bookmarked in the ANPD Core Curriculum, or search YouTube for learning topics. Over time, these small efforts will lead to significant progress.