NURS 6600 – Capstone Synthesis Practicum

Practicum Experience Journal: Analysis of a Practice Problem

Course and Assessment Overview

Course: NURS 6600 – Capstone Synthesis Practicum (MSN capstone)
Assessment type: Individual reflective analysis journal (separate from the formal capstone project deliverable)
Suggested timing: Later in practicum (for example, Weeks 8–11), after sustained exposure to the practicum site
Length: Approximately 1–2 pages (about 500–750 words) per journal entry
Weighting: Typically part of an overall practicum journal grade (for example, 10–20% of course grade across multiple entries)

This journal entry requires you to describe and critically analyze a practice problem, issue, or situation you observed during your practicum that is not the focus of your formal capstone project, using evidence and theoretical concepts from your MSN coursework.

Assignment Context

NURS 6600 is the culminating experience in which you synthesize MSN learning and implement or complete a project in a real practice environment. In addition to the formal capstone project, you are expected to demonstrate your development as a scholar-practitioner by reflecting on practice problems that arise in your setting and analyzing them through relevant theories, concepts, and evidence.

Learning Outcomes Assessed

• Identify a significant practice problem, issue, or situation observed in a real-world setting.

• Analyze the problem using appropriate concepts, principles, theories, and evidence from your MSN specialization.

• Compare observed practice with what is recommended in the scholarly literature.

• Propose an evidence-informed approach for addressing the problem as a developing nurse leader and change agent.

Preparation

1. Review your Practicum Professional Development Objectives and Practicum Project Objectives from Week 1 in your NURS 6600 Practicum Journal document.

2. Reflect on your experiences during recent practicum weeks and identify one problem, issue, or situation that stands out (for example, a recurring workflow breakdown, communication failure, leadership challenge, safety concern, or equity issue).

3. Locate at least three current peer-reviewed sources that address this type of problem in relation to your specialty (for example, nurse executive leadership, informatics, education, population health).

Task Description

1. Description of the Observed Problem, Issue, or Situation (no more than ½ page)

In the NURS 6600 Practicum Journal template, briefly describe one problem, issue, or situation observed during your practicum that is not directly related to your capstone project.

• Provide enough context to understand what occurred (for example, setting, key individuals, sequence of events) without including identifiable information about patients, staff, or organizations.

• Keep this section descriptive and concise; do not analyze here.

2. Evidence-Based Analysis (approximately 1 page)

Using no fewer than three peer-reviewed sources, analyze the problem, issue, or situation within the context of your specialty.

a. Identify relevant concepts, principles, or theories from your MSN coursework (for example, leadership and organizational change, quality and safety science, systems thinking, informatics frameworks, population health models).
b. Explain how these concepts help you understand the underlying causes and dynamics of what you observed.
c. Highlight where observed practice aligns with the scholarly literature and where it diverges, giving special attention to events or patterns that vary from best practice recommendations.

3. Consistency and Inconsistency with Evidence (short section)

Explicitly discuss the ways in which the handling of the problem was consistent and inconsistent with the evidence you reviewed.

• Provide specific examples from your observation and link them directly to points in your sources.

• Note any contextual factors (for example, staffing, culture, resources, policy constraints) that may explain the inconsistencies.

4. Plan for an Alternative, Evidence-Based Approach (approximately ½ page)

Given the various evidence-based approaches that could be used to address the problem, outline a plan for how you, in your current or future role, might approach the situation differently.

• Describe one or two realistic interventions or change strategies that are appropriate to your scope and setting (for example, leading a brief quality-improvement initiative, proposing a protocol change, facilitating an interprofessional huddle, or developing a targeted educational intervention).

• Explain how these steps align with evidence and how they would be expected to improve the situation.

• Connect your proposed approach to your development as a scholar-practitioner and change agent in your specialty.

Documentation and Submission Requirements

• Template: Use your saved NURS 6600 Practicum Journal document; complete the relevant section for this week’s Practicum Experience Journal entry (do not create a separate free-form document).

• Length: About 1–2 pages (500–750 words) for this entry, within the template structure.

• Sources: Include at least three current peer-reviewed sources within the entry; list them in a reference section at the end of the journal entry according to your program’s referencing style.

• Submission: Upload or submit the updated Practicum Journal document through the Week X Practicum Journal link (for example, Week 8, 9, 10, or 11, per your course schedule).

Marking Criteria (Practicum Experience Journal – Problem Analysis Entry)

Capstone practicums often expose patterns that staff have quietly accepted for years, such as routine workarounds or unstructured handoffs, and those small adaptations are usually where the richest opportunities for change hide. When a student deliberately brings theory and current evidence to one of these “normal” problems, the situation starts to look less like an inevitable annoyance and more like a concrete leadership opportunity that can be addressed through targeted communication, clearer processes, or a modest quality-improvement cycle (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2021).

Developing the habit of systematically questioning everyday practice issues is central to the role of the MSN-prepared nurse. Evidence-based practice models emphasize that sustainable improvement begins when clinicians combine clinical expertise, patient context, and the best available research to challenge routine practices and guide change. Through structured reflection and analysis, practicum journals help bridge the gap between theory and practice while reinforcing professional accountability and leadership readiness (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2018).

 References

• National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2021) The Future of Nursing 2020–2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

• American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2021) The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education. Washington, DC: AACN.

• White, K. M., Dudley-Brown, S. and Terhaar, M. F. (2021) Translation of Evidence into Nursing and Health Care. 3rd edn. New York: Springer.

• Melnyk, B. M. and Fineout-Overholt, E. (2018) Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing and Healthcare: A Guide to Best Practice. 4th edn. Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer.

• Walden University (2024) NURS 6600: Capstone Synthesis Practicum Field Experience Guide. Available via Walden Academic Guides.

• Institute of Medicine (2011) The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.