Week 1: Capstone Synthesis Practicum

Week 1: Capstone Synthesis Practicum

Introduction to the Practicum Experience

One must learn by doing the thing; for though you think you know it, you have no certainty until you try.

—Sophocles

Welcome to your Capstone Synthesis Practicum! The practicum experience allows you to refine your nurse executive skills and competencies and enact a project at a healthcare organization under the mentorship of a preceptor. As you engage in the practicum setting, you “learn by doing the thing”—whether that thing be leading a unit, managing budget and finances, or facilitating quality improvement efforts.

Your experiences in the practicum provide a foundation for deepening your understanding of evidence-based practice and facilitating your ongoing development as a scholar-practitioner.

In preparation for your practicum, this week you reflect on the professional transitions that you are currently undergoing or on which you are likely to embark as you complete this Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program. You also identify objectives to guide professional development at your practicum setting.

Learning Objectives

Students will:

· Analyze how the practicum experience supports professional goals

· Construct measurable professional development objectives to be accomplished during the practicum experience

· Apply scholarly literature related to healthcare issues or problems in practicum settings*

· Analyze practicum experiences in the context of a nurse executive role*

· Evaluate the application of theory as it relates to the practicum or practice experience*

· Formulate solutions to authentic problems in healthcare settings*

*Introduced in Week 1 and assessed in Weeks 3, 7, and 11.