Question about the Nursing Sphere

[SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS]

Hi CNSs-

I'm heading into my final two semesters of my MSN. I need to do a capstone project and what I would like to do is a QI at my job- a primary care clinic- that would involve some education for our medical assistants- actually a role-play workshop kind of thing, as part of a larger initiative to improve our care of our patients with diabetes and hypertension.

My question is, do MA's count as "nursing sphere?" The reality is, what used to be done by RNs and LPNs in outpatient settings is now done by MAs.

[Psychcns]

Who do MA's report to? Who oversees their work? Even if it an MD, it appears that they would be assisting nurses, that they would be helping to improve the nursing care. Who would be deciding what kind of education they need, etc

[llg, PhD, RN]

The key question is not whether or not it fits into the nursing realm ... but whether or not your professor will accept it for the purposes of your educational project. While I think your topic may well be appropriate for many things, I wouldn't invest too much in that path until you get the OK from your professor. His/hers is the only opinion that really counts in this case.

[SHGR, MSN, RN, CNS]

True, true. It does ultimately come down to the professor's ok and what I can realistically be allowed to do- I also wonder about the "in general" answer.

The MA's report to the head nurse where I work. Daily tasks are delegated by the provider, and some of the process stuff comes from the Best Practice committee, which is nursing on the organization level.