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Clinical Practice Experience (CPE) Record

Phase 1

[Your Name]

Western Governors University

D030: Advancing Evidence-Based Innovation in Nursing Practice

Dr. Course Instructor Name

Month DD, YY
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Clinical Practice Experience (CPE) Record

Life and all aspects of life are changing significantly over time and one of the

industries that is experiencing robust changes in the healthcare industry with technology

playing a central role in driving change. For healthcare organizations and nurse leaders to

keep pace with these changes, they have to emphasize the aspect of innovation which is the

basis for maintaining competitive advantage and enhancing individual and organizational

performance in specific areas. Therefore, nurse leaders must take on the role of nurse

innovators to assess current situations, identify opportunities, come up with innovative ideas,

design implementation strategies, and implement these ideas to keep pace with industry’s

dynamics. Therefore, nurse leaders as described by Hodgson et al. (2021) must not only have

compelling nurse leadership skills but also be innovative to maintain their relevance in the

industry. For the nurses to identify opportunities, create ideas, and implement then to achieve

the desired standards, they must collaborate with key internal and external stakeholders.

CPE Schedule Table

In the healthcare industry, change is not spontaneous and it is driven by certain factors

within or outside an organization or the industry. When faced by challenges or when

presented by opportunities, nurse leaders must identify the challenge or opportunity and forge

a pathway to addressing the challenge or exploiting the opportunity. Innovation requires

critical thinking, experience, collaboration, and brainstorming to develop rational ideas that

will support a change process. Therefore, while a nurse innovator may have the desire and

drive to innovate, it is imperative to ensure that the idea, process, or tool is understood and

fairly acceptable by all stakeholders. In maintaining a systematic process of innovation, a

CPE schedule is critical as it outlines the key activities required to achieve the desired

objective, the time required for each activity, and the timeline for the whole innovative

process which stems from idea generation to implementation of the idea. Therefore, Table 1
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below the CPE schedule that will facilitate the exploration of the role of a nurse innovator in

collaboration with key stakeholders.

Table 1: CPE Schedule

Phase Task Due Date Estimated Time

of Completion
Phase Review Key activities. 10/6/2021 30 minutes
1 Create a CPE Schedule Table. 10/6/2021 30 minutes
Describe the role of a nurse innovator. 10/6/2021 2 hours
Describe the scope of practice for a nurse 10/6/2021 1 hour
innovator.
Conduct stakeholder analysis. 10/6/2021 1 hour
Create a stakeholder table. 10/6/2021 1 hour
Record Phase 1 Go-React video reflection and 10/7/2021 30 minutes
give feedback to Peers’ videos.
Reflection Summary for phase 1. 10/7/2021 1 hour.
Phase Schedule a brainstorming session with project 10/8/2021 1 hour.
2 stakeholders.
Define and describe the goal of the meeting. 10/8/2021 1 ½ hours.
Identify a consensus decision-making method. 10/9/2021 4 hours
Create a meeting agenda and share it with key 10/9/2021 2 hours.
stakeholders.
Complete the brainstorming session. 10/10/2021 5 hours
Record Phase 2 Go-React video and respond 10/10/2021 1 hour
to peers.
Reflection summary for Phase 2. 10/10/2021 1 hour.
Phase Discuss methods of communicating the 10/11/2021 3 hours.
3 innovation with the stakeholders.
Develop a communication plan outline. 10/11/2021 1 ½ hours.
Create a training plan for employees affected 10/11/2021 2 hours.
by the change.
Training plans for other stakeholders. 10/12/2021 2 hours
Create an action plan for the implementation 10/12/2021 2 hours.
of the innovation.
Record Phase 3 Go-React video and respond 10/12/2021 30 minutes
to peers.
Conduct a Phase 3 reflection summary. 10/12/2021 1 hour.
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Table 1 above provides a summarized breakdown of key activities that a nurse

innovator must emphasize when coming up with an innovative idea and implementing it in

collaboration with other players within and outside the healthcare system. The summary

outlines key activities for the three phases of the process, expected completion dates, and

expected time for each activity.

The Role of a Nurse Innovator

Scope of Practice

Nursing is one of the most complex and sensitive professions around and requires

nurses to constantly conduct assessment, evaluations, and find ways of addressing current

problems or leveraging opportunities in an ever-changing environment. A nurse innovator is

an extension of a nurse leader, as the leader takes a step further to initiating desired

innovative practices in an environment. According to Williams et al. (2016), a nurse

innovator is a registered nurse that takes the role of change agent to drive a policy or a

process by leveraging available opportunities like technological advancements. They

cultivate and advocate for the creation and development of processes, and concepts that help

elevate healthcare. In achieving their objectives as innovators, they must build strong and

productive partnerships with institutions, agencies, and other healthcare professionals to

enhance collaboration. Therefore, at any given point of an innovative process, a nurse

innovator will collaborate with other nurses, multidisciplinary teams, and interdisciplinary

teams to achieve desired outcomes.

Roles

A nurse can strategically be a leader with an extended role of innovation. As a nurse

leader who is also a nurse innovator, there are many roles that such a nurse performs. One of

the key roles of a nurse innovator is consultations with employees and other stakeholders to

generate data that will guide an innovative idea. In role modeling, Cianelli et al. (2016)
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indicate that an innovator must foster collaboration and shared governance. This stimulates

commitment and dedication to a change process that is stirred by an innovative idea. As a

consultant, a nurse innovator provides critical data to the employees and management

supporting a specific idea. Further, through the implementation of the idea, a nurse innovator

will also be liable to providing further instruction and support to the employees.

A nurse innovator has the responsibility of conducting research to support innovative

ideas. Innovative thinking process is spurred by research (Cianelli et al. 2016). A nurse

innovator must therefore perform the role of conducting research to acquire as accurate data

as possible to support a decision or a process. As a researcher, a nurse innovator will design

an evaluation strategy for solving current and future problem when it comes to the adoption

of a change. Further, Williams et al. (2016) indicate that research, as a responsibility for a

nurse innovator aid in the development and testing of academic collaboration and

interprofessional practice models.

Other than consultation and research as the roles and responsibilities for nurse

innovators, training is another role they perform to achieve desired outcomes. According to

Cianelli et al. (2016), training is critical when making a safe and divergent environment that

promotes critical thinking. In that aspect, it is a requirement for employees to receive initial

and continuing training for them to think different and ask questions that will further

innovative activities. Therefore, a nurse innovator may function as a trainer, helping

employees learn new ways of doing things and the use of available data to effect change.

Change, which also involves innovative activities, is best achieved when a nurse innovator

works collaboratively with other employees within an organization. To maintain productivity

of collaborative teams, a nurse innovator must ensure that the members of the team are

adequately trained on the innovative activity or process to enhance success. Therefore, the
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nurse innovator automatically assumes the training role within the organization to effectively

drive innovation.

Required Knowledge and Skills

For a nurse to perform or assume the role of an innovator, there are several skills that

the nurse must portray. A study by Williams et al. (2016) found that a registered nurse

assuming innovator role must be knowledgeable about nursing scope of practice and

applicable nursing standards, be committed to discovery, learning and education. Basically, it

is expected that a nurse must have nursing knowledge to be effective as an innovator.

Thomas, Seifert, and Joyner (2016) also indicate that a nurse innovator must be

knowledgeable on the general nursing practice, health information technology, and healthcare

policies. Study further identified the need for a nurse innovator to develop and expand their

skills beyond their training as nurses.

For a nurse innovator, a key area of focus is on the development of leadership skills.

According to Thomas, Seifert, and Joyner (2016), effective leadership is central in fostering

innovation. Among these skills include the ability to make decisions given challenging

situations, effective communication skills, team empowerment, strong emotional intelligence,

and creativity. Personal integrity, pursuance of excellence, critical thinking, conflict

management, team building and management, and ability to uphold professional ethical

values have been found as effective skills that a nurse must possess to lead others (Hargett et

al. 2017). A nurse innovator must uphold these skills to work with others as innovative

processes or activities are only successful if implemented through collaboration. The

development and expansion of these skills and knowledge increases a nurse innovators

capacity to identity opportunities, implement ideas, and collaborate with others to enhance

success.
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Innovation Stakeholders

As demonstrated so far, for the success of innovative actions or processes, an

innovator must work alongside other people within and outside the innovation circle.

Collaboration and shared governance enhances problem sharing, effective decision-making,

idea generation, and successful implementation of an idea. Therefore, a nurse innovator must

foster collaboration to promote innovation (Cianelli et al. 2016). A nurse innovator must

therefore identify key stakeholders in an innovative process and define why it is important to

include them in the process. The goal of the innovative process is to implement an

information communication technology that will revolutionize provider-patient

communication and reduce physical contact especially with the COVID-19 pandemic while

maintaining quality. Therefore, the key stakeholders as described by Ritz, Althauser, and

Wilson (2014) will revolve around the 4Ps: Provider, Patient, Policymakers, and Payers.

Table 2 below therefore outlines the key stakeholders both internal and external.

Table 2: Innovation Stakeholders

Stakeholder Stakeholder Title

Group
Patients  Individual’s seeking healthcare services, through patient
representatives.
Providers  Healthcare organizations; clinics and hospitals through their
managers.
 Chief Nursing Officers.
 Nurses.
 Doctors.
Payers  Insurance companies.
 Patients (out of pocket).
Policymakers  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Others  Health system managers.
 Information technology managers.
 IT educators.
 Hospital management.
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While the key healthcare stakeholders have been classified as the 4Ps, in

implementing an IT infrastructure to support effective communication and consultations

between healthcare providers and patients without making visits to the clinic, there are other

key stakeholders beyond the 4Ps, Listed as others, this groups of stakeholders is primarily

focused on the aspects of implementing a technological innovation to enhance remote

interactions between providers and their patients. Each of the listed stakeholders has a role in

the development of an innovative idea and its implementation.

Conclusion

Nurse innovators are important when it comes to a change process that involves a new

discovery, process, or tool. Innovators, as demonstrated are an extension of leader who are

change agents and therefore share the basic characteristics, knowledge, and skills of leaders.

Influencing change is challenging but the report expands on the need for a nurse innovator to

promote collaboration in identifying and implementing innovative ideas as failure will result

o fallout of key stakeholders whom the innovator can utilize as a resource to support an

innovative venture. Stakeholders contribute significantly in identifying innovative policies,

interventions, processes, or ideas and form the basis for a successful innovative process or its

failure. Applying appropriate innovator skills and competencies, a nurse leader can initiate a

change process and guarantee its success.

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References

Cianelli, R., Clipper, B., Freeman, R., Goldstein, J., & Wyatt, T. H. (2016). The

innovation road map: A guide for nurse leaders.

https://www.nursingworld.org/globalassets/ana/innovations-roadmap-english.pdf

Hargett, C. W., Doty, J. P., Hauck, J. N., Webb, A. M., Cook, S. H., Tsipis, N. E., Neumann,

J. A., Andolsek, K. M., & Taylor, D. C. (2017). Developing a model for effective

leadership in healthcare: a concept mapping approach. Journal of healthcare

leadership, 9, 69–78. https://doi.org/10.2147/JHL.S141664

Hodgson, N. A., Ladden, M., Madigan, E., Mishan, A., & Montalvo, W. (2021). Emerging

roles for research intensive Ph. D. prepared nurses as leaders and innovators: Views

from funders/sponsors. Journal of Professional Nursing, 37(1), 207-211.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2020.10.003

Ritz, D., Althauser, C., & Wilson, K. (2014). Connecting health information systems for

better health: leveraging interoperability standards to link patient, provider, payor, and

policymaker data. JLN Web. https://www.r4d.org/wp-content/uploads/Connecting-

Health-Information-Systems-for-Better-Health.pdf

Thomas, T. W., Seifert, P. C., & Joyner, J. C. (2016). Registered nurses leading innovative

changes. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 21(3), 3.

https://www.doi.org/10.3912/OJIN.Vol21No03Man03

Williams, T. E., Baker, K., Evans, L., Lucatorto, M. A., Moss, E., O’Sullivan, A., ... & Zittel,

B. (2016). Registered nurses as professionals, advocates, innovators, and collaborative

leaders: Executive summary. Online journal of issues in nursing, 21(5).

https://www.doi.org/10.3912/OJIN.Vol21No03Man05