Nursing Professional Development (NPD) is essential to advancing the education and professional growth of nurses within a hospital setting. Encompassing roles like nurse educators, education coordinators, NPD specialists and clinical staff development specialists, NPD practitioners design, implement and assess educational programs to guide nurses from onboarding through ongoing career development.
Director of Nursing Excellence & Inquiry Lauren Kalember explained that NPD Practitioners help to address the “experience complexity gap” that emerges as experienced nurses retire and healthcare demands evolve. “NPD Practitioners are crucial to closing this gap,” Lauren said. “Their work ensures that nurses are well-equipped to meet the increasing acuity, complexity and technological advancements in patient care.” This career path really focuses on empowering nurses to not only perform today’s practice but evolve tomorrow’s nursing practice with the power of knowledge, skills and abilities.
The NPD team collaborates across the hospital system with clinical leaders, Information Systems, Human Resources partners and others to provide ongoing education and support for our nursing staff. One such collaborative effort was seen in a recent initiative aimed at improving financial stewardship through orientation cost reduction. The NPD team worked together to prioritize time spent on education that was closest to the point of care, making learning more relevant and cost-effective.
This year Texas Children’s celebrated the contributions of this exceptional team with a retreat for Nurse Educators and NPD Specialists. Here, they focused on best practices, role clarity, teamwork and adult learning theory. The retreat concluded with an awards ceremony, honoring those who excel in advancing the professional growth of nurses.
“The team was energized to connect, engage in education relevant to their roles, and share their vision for transforming professional development at Texas Children’s,” Lauren said. “It was an honor to create a day that left them feeling excited and inspired about their work!”