Nursing Professional Development (NPD) is a specialty practice of nursing “that improves the professional practice and role competence of nurses and other healthcare personnel by facilitating ongoing learning, change, and role competence and growth with the intention of improving population health through indirect care” (Harper & Maloney, 2022, p. 16). Registered nurses in this specialty are known as NPD practitioners and fill a variety of organizational-dependent job titles. For example, clinical educator, nurse educator, and nursing education specialist are some of the job titles an NPD professional may hold. Professional development (PD) associates are also valuable NPD team members as these individuals “contribute to the overall functioning of a continuing education/professional development department in a substantive, measurable way” (Association for Nursing Professional Development, 2017, p.2). Often, the work of NPD teams includes, but is not limited to:
- Orientation and transition to practice programs
- Competency assessment
- Preceptor and mentoring programs
- Nursing professional development contact hours
- Education on the use of new equipment, policies, and procedures
- Evidence-based practice and quality improvement initiatives
- Coordination of student affiliations
During the third week of September, the NPD specialty is celebrated worldwide. NPD Week provides the opportunity to recognize the impactful work of NPD team members. NPD Week is September 14-20, 2024, this year. We encourage you to celebrate your NPD colleagues.
The Association for Nursing Professional Development (ANPD), an organizational affiliate of the American Nurses Association (ANA), is the recognized professional association for this unique specialty in nursing and offers an array of resources to support you and organizations in pursuit of celebrating NPD Week. https://www.anpd.org/Events/NPD-Week
