| Course | NURS 4110 Leadership and Health Policy |
|---|---|
| Week | Week 5 |
| Paper type | Discussion post with two peer replies |
| Length | About 620 words, 4 pages |
| Format | Discussion post, APA 7 citations |
| School | Walden University |
| Program | Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NURS 4110 Week 5
Week 5 Discussion: Initial Post
Three Candidate Issues, One Choice: Workplace Violence Against Nurses
The issue I am taking forward is workplace violence against nurses, and the body that would act on it is our composite state's legislature. I work on an adult inpatient behavioral health unit, so this was not a neutral choice, but I did test it against two other candidates before settling on it.
I scored three issues against three criteria. The first criterion was how directly the issue affects nursing practice. The second was whether a decision-maker exists that a nurse can actually reach. The third was whether anything is moving right now. A hospital policy that leaves nurses without meal-break coverage when the unit is short scores high on reach, since one administration decides it and I can get a meeting, but low on scope, because it touches a single hospital. Limits on mandatory overtime score well on the first two criteria, but no bill is pending in our state this session and no legislator has taken it up. Workplace violence scores well on all three. It shapes daily practice on my unit; the legislature's health committee is reachable through our state nurses association; and a bill that would require hospitals to adopt violence prevention plans and report incidents has been introduced this session.
The size of the problem is not in doubt. A quantitative review pooling 136 articles on more than 150,000 nurses found that roughly a third had been exposed to physical violence and about two-thirds to nonphysical violence, with physical violence most prevalent in emergency, geriatric and psychiatric settings (Spector et al., 2014). Phillips (2016) described how underreporting hides the scale of the problem in the United States and noted that federal action had been limited to guidance rather than an enforceable standard, which is part of why states have become the level where change happens.
The multiple streams framework of Kingdon (2011) explains why timing counts as a criterion. Policy change becomes likely when three independent streams meet: a problem that is recognized as needing attention, a policy proposal that is available and workable, and a political climate receptive to action. When they converge, a window opens, and it does not stay open long. In our state the problem stream is active because of two widely reported assaults on nurses last year. The proposal stream has a bill modeled on laws already adopted elsewhere. The political stream includes a health committee chair who has spoken publicly about the assaults. Mandatory overtime has a clear problem and available proposals, but no political stream at present, so a nurse's effort there would be building for a future window rather than using a current one.
Choosing the issue with an open window is not the same as choosing the most important issue. It is choosing the one where a student's advocacy this quarter has a realistic chance of mattering.
Reply to Priya
Priya, you chose nurse practitioner full practice authority. Who decides it in your state: the legislature, the board of nursing through rulemaking, or both? If scope of practice is fixed in statute, the board cannot change it on its own, and your advocacy would need to target the health committee rather than the board.
Reply to Tom
Tom, you make a good case that the window is open for your school nurse staffing issue because of the new state education budget. What would close it? If the budget is adopted before your committee hearing, the next chance might be a full year away. Kingdon (2011) stresses that windows close quickly, often because a decision is made or the attention moves elsewhere. Knowing the budget calendar might be the most useful fact for your plan.
References
Kingdon, J. W. (2011). Agendas, alternatives, and public policies (Updated 2nd ed.). Longman.
Phillips, J. P. (2016). Workplace violence against health care workers in the United States. New England Journal of Medicine, 374(17), 1661-1669. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMra1501998
Spector, P. E., Zhou, Z. E., & Che, X. X. (2014). Nurse exposure to physical and nonphysical violence, bullying, and sexual harassment: A quantitative review. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 51(1), 72-84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2013.01.010
NURS 4110 Week 5 instructions, in plain terms
The fifth NURS 4110 thread usually asks you to select a policy issue for the rest of the course. You compare candidate issues against stated criteria, choose one, identify the decision-making body and justify the choice with data and a policy process model. Faculty mark justification, so choosing a topic because you care about it is not enough. Cite data and a model such as Kingdon's in APA 7. Two or three candidates is a typical comparison. The issue can be an organizational policy or a law, depending on the section. Replies should test the classmate's criteria. NURS 4110 faculty want each candidate scored against the same criteria, the body that would act named and data cited for the size of the problem, such as Bureau of Labor Statistics injury figures.
How this NURS 4110 Week 5 example is built
A roughly 500-word initial post, a compact comparison built into its second paragraph, then two replies. The opening names the selected issue and the level of government that would act on it, the state legislature, in one sentence. The comparison sets the three candidates against three criteria: how directly the issue affects nursing practice, whether a reachable decision-maker exists, and whether anything is currently moving. The meal-break policy scores high on reach but low on scope, since only one hospital's administration decides it. Overtime scores well but has no current bill in the composite state. Workplace violence wins on all three. Kingdon's framework explains why timing counts: a recognized problem, an available proposal and receptive politics have converged. Replies ask one colleague who decides their issue and another what would close its window.
Where the marks sit in the NURS 4110 Week 5 rubric
Issue selection posts are often marked on justification, and a post that announces a topic because the author cares about it has given feeling where the rubric wanted reasons. Criteria make the difference: sections tend to reward a choice made against named standards over a choice defended with enthusiasm. The relevant level of government or organization is another common criterion, since an issue with no identifiable decision-maker cannot carry the policy assignments that follow. Framework use earns credit when it explains something specific, here the timing, and scores poorly when a paragraph simply defines the three streams. Evidence of the problem's significance is expected even in a selection post, so a source establishing that violence against nurses is a recognized concern belongs in the argument. Replies are credited for testing a colleague's selection, not approving it.
NURS 4110 Week 5 help: mistakes that cost marks
Issue selection posts lose credit when the choice rests on feeling. Compare candidates against criteria. Another common gap is skipping the decision-making body. Name who would act. Writers also cite data loosely. Give a source and year. Avoid choosing an issue too broad to act on, such as fixing health care. Explain timing with the streams model. In replies, test whether the classmate's issue has a policy solution. Close with the first step for next week. Writers also forget to say why the other candidates lost. Give a reason for each. Another frequent slip is an issue with no clear decision-maker. Name one.
Get a NURS 4110 Week 5 example written to your instructions
Pass the Week 5 prompt and rubric to the desk, with any issue list your section provides. The policy issue selection post drafted for NURS 4110 arrives with its comparison and two replies. First one free, 24 to 48 hours. A shortlist of candidate issues from your own practice can stand in for the three used here.
More NURS 4110 papers and BSN samples
- NURS 4110 Week 1: Leadership Voice Post
- NURS 4110 Week 2: Leadership Style Critique
- NURS 4110 Week 3: Leadership Inventory Analysis
- NURS 4110 Week 4: Advocacy Development Plan
- NURS 4110 Week 6: Policy Stakeholder Map
- NURS 4110 Week 7: Policy Impact Post
- NURS 4110 Week 8: Advocacy Letter Draft
- NURS 4110 Week 9: Revision Response Memo
- NURS 4110 Week 10: Final Policy Brief
- NURS 4110 Week 11: Policy Voice Reflection
- NURS 4151 Week 5: Appraisal Worksheet
- NURS 4106 Week 5: Just Culture Thread
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- NURS 3111 Week 5: Interoperability Thread
NURS 4110 Week 5 questions, answered
How many issues should the post compare?
Enough to show a choice was made, and few enough to compare properly. The example uses three, set against three criteria in one compact paragraph, which demonstrates reasoning without turning the post into a table. Comparing a single issue against nothing gives the rubric no selection to credit, while comparing six in five hundred words leaves each one described too thinly to judge.
What does Kingdon's multiple streams add to issue selection?
An account of timing. Kingdon argues that policy changes when three streams meet, a problem people recognize, a workable proposal and favorable politics, opening a window that does not stay open long. The example uses that idea to explain why workplace violence is the stronger choice now, not only the more important one. Timing is a legitimate selection criterion in policy work.
Can the chosen issue be an organizational policy rather than a law?
Often yes, and the example considers one before setting it aside. A hospital meal-break coverage policy is decided by administration and can be a strong choice when a section's later assignments aim at an organizational audience. The example rejects it on scope, not legitimacy. Check whether your prompt expects legislative or regulatory policy, since some sections require a public-policy issue.
Where can I find a free NURS 4110 Week 5 sample paper?
The workplace violence issue selection post is shown here with three candidates compared, the criteria, Kingdon's streams and replies to Priya and Tom.
Which issue is chosen in NURS 4110 Week 5?
Workplace violence against nurses, with the state legislature as the body that would act.