Write a 4-6-page analysis of a current problem or issue in health care, including a proposed solution and possible ethical implications.

Introduction

In your health care career, you will be confronted with many problems that demand a solution. By using research skills, you can learn what others are doing and saying about similar problems. Then you can analyze the problem and the people and systems it affects. You can examine potential solutions and their ramifications. This assessment allows you to practice this approach with a real-world problem.

Demonstration of Proficiency

By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the course competencies through the following assessment scoring guide criteria:

• Competency 1: Apply information literacy and library research skills to obtain scholarly information in the field of health care.
  • Use scholarly information to describe and explain a health care problem or issue and identify possible causes for it.
• Competency 2: Apply scholarly information through critical thinking to solve problems in the field of health care.
  • Analyze a health care problem or issue by describing the context, explaining why it is important and identifying populations affected by it.
  • Discuss potential solutions for a health care problem or issue and describe what would be required to implement a solution.
• Competency 3: Apply ethical principles and academic standards to the study of health care.
  • Analyze the ethical implications if a potential solution to a health care problem or issue was implemented.
• Competency 4: Write for a specific audience, in appropriate tone and style, in accordance with Capella’s writing standards.
  • Write clearly and logically, with correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
  • Write following APA style for in-text citations, quotes, and references.

Instructions

Note: The requirements outlined below correspond to the grading criteria in the scoring guide. At a minimum, be sure to address each point. In addition, you are encouraged to review the performance-level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work will be assessed.

1. Describe the health care problem or issue you selected for use in Assessment 2 (from the Assessment Topic Areas media piece) and provide details about it.
   • Explore your chosen topic. For this, you should use the first four steps of the Socratic Problem-Solving Approach to aid your critical thinking. This approach was introduced in Assessment 2.
   • Identify possible causes for the problem or issue.
2. Use scholarly information to describe and explain the health care problem or issue and identify possible causes for it.
   • Identify at least three scholarly or academic peer-reviewed journal articles about the topic.
     • You may find the How Do I Find Peer-Reviewed Articles? library guide helpful in locating appropriate references.
     • You may use articles you found while working on Assessment 2 or you may search the Capella library for other articles.
     • You may find the applicable Undergraduate Library Research Guide helpful in your search.
   • Review the Think Critically About Source Quality page to help you complete the following:
     • Assess the credibility of the information sources.
     • Assess the relevance of the information sources.
3. Analyze the health care problem or issue.
   • Describe the setting or context for the problems or issues.
   • Describe why the problem or issue is important to you.
   • Identify groups of people affected by the problem or issue.
   • Provide examples that support your analysis of the problem or issue.
4. Discuss potential solutions for the health care problem or issue.
   • Describe what would be required to implement a solution.
   • Describe potential consequences of ignoring the problem or issue.
   • Provide the pros and cons for one of the solutions you are proposing.
5. Analyze the ethical implications if the potential solution (the one for which you provide pros and cons) were to be implemented.
   • Provide examples from the literature to support the points you are making.
   • Discuss the pros and cons of implementing the proposed solution from an ethical principle point of view.
   • Describe what would be required to implement the proposed solution.

Example Assessment: You may use the following to give you an idea of what a Proficient or higher rating on the scoring guide would look like:

• Assessment 3 Example [PDF].

Additional Requirements

Your assessment should also meet the following requirements:

• Length: 4–6 typed, double-spaced pages, not including the title page and reference page.
• Font and font size: Times New Roman, 12 point.
• APA template: Use the APA Style Paper Template [DOCX] as the paper format and the APA Style Paper Tutorial [DOC] for guidance.
• Written communication: Write clearly and logically, with correct use of spelling, grammar, punctuation, and mechanics.
• Using outside sources: Integrate information from outside sources into academic writing by appropriately quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing, following APA style.
• References: Integrate information from outside sources to include at least three scholarly or academic peer-reviewed journal articles and three in-text citations within the paper.
• APA format: Follow current APA guidelines for in-text citations of outside sources in the body of your paper and also on the reference page.

Organize your paper using the following structure and headings:

• Title page. A separate page.
• Introduction. A brief one-paragraph statement about the purpose of the paper.
• Elements of the problem/issue. Identify the elements of the problem or issue or question.
• Analysis. Analyze, define, and frame the problem or issue.
• Considering options. Consider solutions, responses, or answers.
• Solution. Choose a solution, response, or answer.
• Ethical implications. Ethical implications of implementing the solution.
• Implementation. Implementation of the potential solution.
• Conclusion. One paragraph.

If you would like assistance in organizing your assessment, or if you simply have a question about your assessment, do not hesitate to ask faculty or the teaching assistants in the NHS Learner Success Lab for guidance and suggestions.

Note: Faculty may use the Writing Feedback Tool when grading this assessment. The Writing Feedback Tool is designed to provide you with guidance and resources to develop your writing based on five core skills. You will find writing feedback in the Scoring Guide for the assessment, once your work has been evaluated.