Why is AACN developing new role " Clinical Nurse Leader"????

[NRSKarenRN, BSN, RN]

the clinical nurse leader

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the clinical nurse leader or cnl

is a new nursing role being developed by the american association of colleges of nursing (aacn) in collaboration with leaders from the education and practice arenas. aacn is advancing the cnl to improve the quality of patient care and to better prepare nurses to thrive in the health care system. the cnl role emerged following research and discussion with stakeholder groups as a way to engage highly skilled clinicians in outcomes-based practice and quality improvement.

in practice, the cnl oversees the care coordination of a distinct group of patients and actively provides direct patient care in complex situations. this master's degree-prepared clinician puts evidence-based practice into action to ensure that patients benefit from the latest innovations in care delivery. the cnl evaluates patient outcomes, assesses cohort risk, and has the decision-making authority to change care plans when necessary. the cnl is a leader in the health care delivery system, and the implementation of this role will vary across settings.

http://www.aacn.nche.edu/cnl/about.htm

gee, i thought this was the cns role in a hospital facility...why the need for another practioner.....i must be getting old.

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

Gee whiz - I wonder what these "master's prepared" nurses will do? I agree that we don't need further fragmentation of our career.

[sunnyjohn]

I talked with the program director for the Direct -entry Master's program at Xavier in Ohio.

For the most part the CNL is a new designation for those graduating with an MSN from generic dierct-entry programs.

From my understanding of the designation, they are using it to acknowledge the additional education of these new nurses while at the same time noting that their bedside exeperience may be limited.

It's kind of a "I have a MSN and with a handful of years of experience I could be a real asset and help everyone but for the time being train and treat me like a new grad" designation.

They are trying to develop an exam for it as it is still very unofficial.

[twarlik]

They are offering this degree at a university here in Portland and I agree that the new role seems somewhat poorly defined. I asked someone who is enrolled in the program about it and she even had a difficult time telling me what the function of a "Clinical Nurse Leader" would be. I do believe that some of the hospitals out here are working with the program to incorporate this new CNL role once they start turning out graduates. Will be interesting to see how it develops.

[llg, PhD, RN]

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Gee, I thought this was the CNS role in a hospital facility...why the need for another practioner.....i must be getting old.

[/left]

It makes me very angry to see all the proliferation of new role titles, new degrees, etc. that only add to the confusion of our professsion. We should be clarifying the system of education, job titling, etc. -- not making it more confusing!

My personal theory is that it is easier for a school to get grant money for a program if it has a new title and "develops a new role" than it is to get funded for improving a program that has already been established. Also, the proponents of the "new and different" role get the opportunity to write articles about it, go to conferences and give presentations, etc. about it. If they were to focus on improving the existing programs, roles, etc. they wouldn't have many publishing/speaking opportunities -- and those are the kinds of things that get them tenure and more money.

So ... they do more damage to our profession in exchange for getting the personal rewards of published articles, conference presentation opportunties, grant funding, etc. "They" (the individuals pushing these programs) get the rewards and the individual students and nurses trying to get the "right" credentials and practice get confused and impoverished trying to keep up with all the changes. The profession as a whole suffers.

The leaders of our profession should be ashamed of themselves for allowing it to keep happening again and again.

llg, PhD, RN

[Antikigirl, ASN, RN]

They are trying to adapt a position like this at one of the hospitals I am working for, and basically it is falling down on the charge nurses (that have Masters)!!!! Like they don't have enough to do???

We have trained outpatient discharge planners that do this job, and they are Nurses. They are awesome at what they do, and really get those services for people that are needed no matter the situation! They are awesome! They also can find probelms within the facility that tend to hinder their progress...whether it is more teaching needed by nursing staff, or MD's not writing complete orders...things of that nature that can be readily fixed with some education.

So what...let them go and put in a Masters of Nursing there instead? These people have been doing this for some time, know their references...are known by facilities and organizations that help...isn't that like stepping backwards????

Sounds to me like double stepping, and adding more and more responsiblity on nurses by simply putting in yet another title. They don't tend to take responsiblities away...just add more...uhgggggggg!

[ZASHAGALKA, RN]

This just in: the AACN is working on developing a new role: Degree Oriented Professional Engagement Nurse. The DOPE nurse will be a masters prepared nurse and will coordinate care from the bedside. They will interact will all levels of the multi-disciplinary team and finally show that doctors and the public will love us and treat us to piles of respect now that we all have sufficient education.

~faith,

Timothy.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

We have a Clinical Nurse Leader in our department. She oversees the care of the trauma patients, among other things. She's big on customer service. She VERY big on research.

Most of us are bit confused of her role sometimes. She was one of the first to graduate with this focus from USF.

Frankly, if they don't see hard cores results from an economic standpoint having an CNL probably won't take off.

[Tweety, BSN, RN]

They are trying to adapt a position like this at one of the hospitals I am working for, and basically it is falling down on the charge nurses (that have Masters)!!!! Like they don't have enough to do???

We have trained outpatient discharge planners that do this job, and they are Nurses. They are awesome at what they do, and really get those services for people that are needed no matter the situation! They are awesome! They also can find probelms within the facility that tend to hinder their progress...whether it is more teaching needed by nursing staff, or MD's not writing complete orders...things of that nature that can be readily fixed with some education.

So what...let them go and put in a Masters of Nursing there instead? These people have been doing this for some time, know their references...are known by facilities and organizations that help...isn't that like stepping backwards????

Sounds to me like double stepping, and adding more and more responsiblity on nurses by simply putting in yet another title. They don't tend to take responsiblities away...just add more...uhgggggggg!

You're talking about RN Case Managers, which is not what a CNL does.

I'm not defending the need for CNL, but they are not the same thing as case managers.

[RN4NICU, LPN, LVN]

Gee, I thought this was the CNS role in a hospital facility...why the need for another practioner.....i must be getting old.

Maybe its in response to the NCSBN pushing to get rid of the CNS role?

[Otessa, BSN, RN]

I've looked at the CNL option since I am an RN looking at getting my Masters. I work in Quality Improvement.

[swampkitty421]

Otessa, it looks like AACN is developing the role to help with leadership promotion. It also seems that due to the nursing shortage, it is designed to appeal to people who may not traditionally consider nursing, especially those of us who already have a Bachelor's degree in something else. if you look at their site, http://www.aacn.nche.edu/CNL/FAQ.htm , it explains they "why" part pretty well. Unfortunately, it does not explain much else. Especially if you're considering making such a career change.