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Polly Walker

Publications and source records attributed to Polly Walker.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Testing the model for testing competency.

The pilot study to demonstrate the utility of the CBRDM in the practice setting was successful. Using a matrix evaluation tool based on the model's competencies, evaluators were able to observe specific performance behaviors of senior nursing students and new graduates at either the novice or competent levels. The study faced the usual perils of pilot studies, including small sample size, a limited number of items from the total CBRDM, restricted financial resources, inexperienced researchers, unexpected barriers, and untested evaluation tools. It was understood from the beginning of the study that the research would be based on a program evaluation model, analyzing both processes and outcomes. However, the meager data findings led to the desire to continue to study use of the model for practice setting job expectations, career planning for nurses, and curriculum development for educators. Although the California Strategic Planning Committee for Nursing no longer has funding, we hope that others interested in role differentiation issues will take the results of this study and test the model in other practice settings. Its ability to measure higher levels of competency as well as novice and competent should be studied, i.e., proficient, expert, and advanced practice. The CBRDM may be useful in evaluating student and nurse performance, defining role expectations, and identifying the preparation necessary for the roles. The initial findings related to the two functions as leader and teacher in the care provider and care coordinator roles led to much discussion about helping students and nurses develop competence. Additional discussion focused on the roles as they apply to settings such as critical care or primary health care. The model is useful for all of nursing as it continues to define its levels of practice and their relationship to on-the-job performance, curriculum development, and career planning.

California↗
PubMed2003

A test of the California competency-based differentiated role model.

To address the incongruence between the expectations of nursing service and education in California, the Education Industry Interface Task Force of the California Strategic Planning Committee for Nursing developed descriptions to assist employers and educators in clearly differentiating practice and educational competencies. The completion of the Competency-Based Role Differentiation Model resulted in the need to test the model for its utility in the service setting, in education, and for career planning for nurses. Three alpha demonstration sites were selected based on representative geographical regions of California. The sites were composed of tri-partnerships consisting of a medical center, an associate degree in nursing program, and a baccalaureate nursing program. Observers rated senior students and new graduates in medical-surgical units on their behaviors in teacher and leadership care provider and care coordinator roles. The alpha demonstration study results were as expected. That is, senior students practice predominantly at a novice level in teacher and management/leadership care provider functions and new graduates practice predominately at the competent level. New graduates are more likely to take on novice and competent care coordinator roles. The CBRDM may be useful for practice and education settings to evaluate student and nurse performance, to define role expectations, and to identify the preparation necessary for the roles. It is useful for all of nursing as it continues to define its levels of practice and their relationship to on-the-job performance, curriculum development, and carrier planning.

California↗
PubMed2002

How sustainable agriculture can address the environmental and human health harms of industrial agriculture.

The industrial agriculture system consumes fossil fuel, water, and topsoil at unsustainable rates. It contributes to numerous forms of environmental degradation, including air and water pollution, soil depletion, diminishing biodiversity, and fish die-offs. Meat production contributes disproportionately to these problems, in part because feeding grain to livestock to produce meat--instead of feeding it directly to humans--involves a large energy loss, making animal agriculture more resource intensive than other forms of food production. The proliferation of factory-style animal agriculture creates environmental and public health concerns, including pollution from the high concentration of animal wastes and the extensive use of antibiotics, which may compromise their effectiveness in medical use. At the consumption end, animal fat is implicated in many of the chronic degenerative diseases that afflict industrial and newly industrializing societies, particularly cardiovascular disease and some cancers. In terms of human health, both affluent and poor countries could benefit from policies that more equitably distribute high-protein foods. The pesticides used heavily in industrial agriculture are associated with elevated cancer risks for workers and consumers and are coming under greater scrutiny for their links to endocrine disruption and reproductive dysfunction. In this article we outline the environmental and human health problems associated with current food production practices and discuss how these systems could be made more sustainable.

Agriculture↗