The purpose of this assignment is to identify the scope of practice in one’s state including level of independence of practice, prescribing authority, any limitations of practice, process for obtaining licensure in your state, certification and education requirements for licensure.  Next, students will discuss how the level of independence of practice in their state, i.e., reduced, restricted or full practice, affects patient’s access to care in their local community.   Activity Learning Outcomes  Through this discussion, the student will demonstrate the ability to:  Understand NP practice as defined by law (CO2)  Determine legislation as defined by legislation, statutes and regulations (CO2)  Identify barriers to ensuring patient’s rights (CO3)  Due Date: Wednesday by 11:59pm MST of Week 6  Students must post a minimum of two times in each graded discussion. The two posts in each individual discussion must be on separate days. Posting twice on two different days meets the minimum requirement however for full credit, the student must post?at least three substantive posts on three different days. The student must provide an initial post to each graded discussion topic posted by the course instructor, by Wednesday, 11:59 p.m. MT of Week 6. Subsequent posts, including essential responses to peers, must occur no later than the?Sunday, 11:59 p.m. MT at the end of Week 6. Students are expected to submit assignments by the time they are due. Threaded discussions are not considered assignments and are not part of the late assignment policy.  A 10% late penalty will be imposed for discussions posted after the deadline on Wednesday of week 6, regardless of the number of days late. NOTHING will be accepted after 11:59pm MT on Sunday (i.e. student will receive an automatic 0).  Total Points Possible: 100  Requirements:  Discuss your state NP community in terms of scope of practice. Include the your state’s scope of practice for NPs including:  Level of independence of practice**In California, NPs are required to practice under Standardized Procedure Guidelines. If CA is your intended practice state, please provide details on how Standardized Procedures Guidelines are developed in California and an example of a California SPG. Prescribing authority  Any limitations of practice  Process for obtaining licensure in your state  Certification and education requirements for licensure.  If you live in a restricted or reduced practice state, how has patient care been impacted in your local community from these barriers?  For instance, is the ED used for primary care?  Are the EDs overcrowded with long wait times?  Are there urgent care clinics readily available? Is there adequate access to primary care?  If you live in a full practice, how has independent practice of the APN resulted in improved patient access to healthcare?    How does access to NPs impacts any healthcare disparities? A scholarly resource must be used for EACH discussion question each week.  DISCUSSION CONTENT  Category  Points  %  Description  Scope of practice and NP requirements  30  30%  Provides relevant evidence of scholarly inquiry of their state’s NP scope of practice. Uses valid, relevant, and reliable outside sources to contribute to the threaded discussion.  Practice barriers and access to healthcare  30  30%  Provides relevant evidence of scholarly inquiry of whether their state is a reduced, restricted or full practice state and the impact on the local community with respect to healthcare access. Uses valid, relevant, and reliable outside sources to contribute to the threaded discussion.  Healthcare disparities  15  15%  Provides relevant evidence of scholarly inquiry of how access to NPs impacts healthcare disparities. Uses valid, relevant, and reliable outside sources to contribute to the threaded discussion.  75  75%  Total CONTENT Points= 75 pts  DISCUSSION FORMAT  Category  Points  %  Description  Interactive Dialogue  20  20%  4 Required Elements:  Responds a minimum of two other posts to peers and/or faculty in the threaded discussion;  Responses to peer/faculty are substantive (adds importance, depth, and meaningfulness to the discussion)  Responds to all direct questions from faculty (if no question asked directly, student responded to questions posed to the entire class)  Summarizes what was learned from the lesson, readings, and other student posts for the week. The summary could be included in one of the three minimum posts.  Discuss your state NP community in terms of scope of practice. Include the your state’s scope of practice for NPs including: Level of independence of practice**In California, NPs are required to practice under Standardized Procedure Guidelines. If CA is your intended practice state, please provide details on how Standardized Procedures Guidelines are developed in California and an example of a California SPG. Prescribing authority Any limitations of practice Process for obtaining licensure in your state Certification and education requirements for licensure. If you live in a restricted or reduced practice state, how has patient care been impacted in your local community from these barriers? For instance, is the ED used for primary care? Are the EDs overcrowded with long wait times? Are there urgent care clinics readily available? Is there adequate access to primary care? If you live in a full practice, how has independent practice of the APN resulted in improved patient access to healthcare? How does access to NPs impacts any healthcare disparities?