Aligning My Goals with Walden and AACN’s Essentials
Walden University remains a premier learning center. The vision of the institution is to establish an environment where professional competencies and knowledge contribute to solving critical challenges within society. The mission is to provide an opportunity for career professionals to transform themselves and ensure positive social changes. Likewise, the university seeks to excel in delivering a multi-contextual education opportunity for all learners (Walden University, n.d.-a). The vision, mission, statement on social change, and goals are aligned with my goals.
My personal goal is to utilize my skills and expertise in effecting positive changes to those around me. In this respect, I maintain responsibility in engaging others in progressive topics and have been keeping on health education targeted at improving the wellness of others. This concurs with the SDOH provisions on access to health and health information (CDC, 2024). The university, through its objectives, vision, and mission, foresees a society where graduates produce a positive social impact. The institution has also established diverse and inclusive structures where learners from different backgrounds interact to develop long-lasting solutions to real-life problems. This way, I can recognize apparent differences between others and myself, as well as remain culturally aware of our differences.
The university’s goals, statement on the outcomes of social change, vision, mission, and SDOH frameworks are also aligned with my professional and academic goals. As a student, I have always sought to bolster my knowledge and skills in diverse career areas. Likewise, as a professional, I remain committed to career progression and being able to produce a long-lasting impact on my fellows. Walden University’s goal of producing reflective practitioners, the vision of ensuring professional competencies are applied to solving real-life problems, and its mission of creating a transformative environment for learners to produce a positive social change is a highlight of my academic and professional journey so far (Walden University, n.d.-b). These statements, alongside the social change statement, often remind me of my pursuit of better communities and the need to gather skills and knowledge to execute my roles as an agent for social change.
The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) outlines the essentials of professional nursing. My personal, professional, and academic goals are aligned with the essentials detailed by AACN. The essential of clinical judgment and the use of evidence-based practice requires nurses to integrate learned concepts and evidence in their clinical decision-making process (AACN, 2021). These essentials are aligned with my academic goals of knowledge and capacity expansion for learners. I believe that by gaining knowledge of diverse nursing concepts, I will be able to utilize them to make the right clinical decisions during practice. Likewise, the essential health policy implores nurses to be health advocates. This essential is aligned with my personal, academic, and professional goal of being able to impact those around me positively. As a health advocate, I can lobby for positive social changes by participating in policy-making processes and being proactive in educating my patients.
Social change is a deliberate commitment towards transforming communities (Read et al., 2016). I plan to incorporate the statement on my commitment to social change into my professional practice and schoolwork by capturing it in writing. The written commitment will then be displayed in the various tools I use regularly. This way, I can remind myself of my commitment to social change.
Walden University’s goal, vision, mission, and social change outcomes are aligned with my professional, academic, and personal goals. Likewise, my goals are aligned with the AACN’s essentials of evidence-based practice, health policy, and clinical judgment. Collectively, these provisions remain a guide to my decision-making processes and how I engage others.
References
American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2021). The essentials: Core competencies for professional nursing education. https://www.aacnnursing.org/Portals/0/PDFs/Publications/Essentials-2021.pdf
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024, January 17). Social determinants of health (SDOH). CDC. https://www.cdc.gov/about/priorities/why-is-addressing-sdoh-important.html
Read, C. Y., Betancourt, D. M. P., & Morrison, C. (2016). Social change: A framework for inclusive leadership development in nursing education. Journal of Nursing Education, 55(3), 164–167. https://doi.org/10.3928/01484834-20160216-08
Walden University. (n.d.-a). Social determinants of health: Understanding vision health equity. Walden University Education. https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/master-of-science-in-nursing/resource/social-determinants-of-health-understanding-vision-health-equity
Walden University. (n.d.-b). Vision, mission, and goals. In Walden University Student Handbook. https://academics.waldenu.edu/handbook/vision-mission-goals
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Question 
Aligning My Goals with Walden and AACN’s Essentials
By now you should be familiar with Walden University’s mission, vision, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework. If not, please refer to this week’s Learning Resources where you will find links to these important materials. Walden’s mission, vision, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework will guide you in this course, throughout your program of study, and into your career as a DNP-prepared nurse.
Aligning My Goals with Walden and AACN’s Essentials
The AACN has developed a set of standards, known as The Essentials, which define the foundational competencies contained in the DNP degree program’s curriculum. By the end of your program of study, you will have acquired these competencies, and they will inform your areas of practice as a DNP-prepared nurse. Keep in mind that in addition to your personal, academic, and professional goals, you will also be required to demonstrate and enact The Essentials in your daily practice.
For this Assignment, you will reflect on your personal, academic, and professional goals and consider how they align with AACN’s The Essentials and Walden University’s vision, mission, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework.
To prepare:
• Review this week’s Learning Resources, paying special attention to the following:
o AACN’s The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education
o Walden University’s vision, mission, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework
• Reflect on your personal, academic, and professional goals and consider how they align with:
o AACN’s The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education
o Walden University’s vision, mission, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework
• Consider how you will incorporate a commitment to social change into your program of study and professional practice.
The Assignment: (2–3 pages)
• Explain how your personal, academic, and professional goals align with Walden University’s vision, mission, social change outcomes, and SDOH framework. Be specific and provide examples.
• Explain how your personal, academic, and professional goals align with AACN’s The Essentials.
• Explain how you plan to incorporate a commitment to social change into your program of study and professional practice.
Note: Use this week’s Learning Resources to support your Assignment. Use proper APA format and style for all references and citations. The College of Nursing requires that all papers include a title page, introduction, summary, and references. Use the College of Nursing Writing TemplateLinks to an external site. for your Assignment submission.
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2021). The essentials: Core competencies for professional nursing educationLinks to an external site.. https://www.aacnnursing.org/Portals/0/PDFs/Publications/Essentials-2021.pdf
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, December 8). Social determinants of health at CDCLinks to an external site.. https://www.cdc.gov/socialdeterminants/index.htm
• Read, C. Y., Betancourt, D. M. P., & Morrison, C. (2016). Social change: A framework for inclusive leadership development in nursing educationLinks to an external site.. Journal of Nursing Education, 55(3), 164–167. https://doi.org/10.3928/01484834-20160216-08
• Walden University. (n.d.). Social determinants of health: Understanding vision health equityLinks to an external site.. https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/master-of-science-in-nursing/resource/social-determinants-of-health-understanding-vision-health-equity
• Walden University. (n.d.). Vision, mission, and goalsLinks to an external site..
https://academics.waldenu.edu/handbook/vision-mission-goals
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2023, June). AACN fact sheet – DNPLinks to an external site.. https://www.aacnnursing.org/news-data/fact-sheets/dnp-fact-sheet
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (n.d.). StudentsLinks to an external site.. https://www.aacnnursing.org/students