Purpose It is becoming increasingly important for registered nurses to assume a

Purpose
It is becoming increasingly important for registered nurses to assume a leadership role in a changing health care system. Hence, registered nurses must be able to assess and act to fulfill their own learning needs in order to work to their full scope of practice. To complete this assignment, consider an issue or trend in nursing or health care and choose one of the options from the bulleted list below. Your papers must be scholarly in presentation, reflective of course content, and although they may be related to one another, they must not be duplications.
Paper/Project Options:
Position Paper: presents an arguable position on an issue with the goal of convincing the audience that this position is valid. The position paper is related to course content; be clear as to difference between a position paper, discussion paper, and an issue paper
Writing a Position Paper
Issue Criteria
To take a side on a subject, you should first establish the arguability of a topic that interests you. Ask yourself the following questions to ensure that you will be able to present a strong argument:
Is it a real issue, with genuine controversy and uncertainty?
Can you distinctly identify two positions?
Are you personally interested in advocating one of these positions?
Is the issue narrow enough to be manageable?
Analyzing an Issue and Developing an Argument
Once your topic is selected, you should do some research on the subject matter. While you may already have an opinion on your topic and an idea about which side of the argument you want to take, you need to ensure that your position is well supported. Listing out the pro and con sides of the topic will help you examine your ability to support your counterclaims, along with a list of supporting evidence for both sides. Supporting evidence includes the following:
Factual knowledge – Information that is verifiable and agreed upon by almost everyone.
Statistical Inferences – Interpretation and examples of an accumulation of facts.
Informed Opinion – Opinion developed through research and/or expertise of the claim.
Personal Testimony – Personal experience related by a knowledgeable party.
In considering your audience, ask yourself the following questions:
Is your topic interesting?
Can you manage the material within the specifications set by the tutor?
Does your topic assert something specific and propose a plan of action?
Do you have enough material to support an opinion?
Organization
Your introduction should lead up to a thesis that organizes the rest of your paper. There are three advantages to leading with the thesis:
The audience knows where you stand.
The thesis is located in the two strongest places, first and last.
It is the most common form of academic argument used.
Generic Sample Outline for a Position Paper
Introduction
Introduce the topic
Provide background on the topic
Assert the thesis [your view on the issue]
Counter Argument
Summarize the counterclaims
Provide supporting information for counterclaims
Refute the counterclaims
Give evidence for argument
Your Argument
Assert point #1 of your claims
Give your opinion
Provide support
Assert point #2 of your claims
Give your opinion
Provide support
Assert point #3 of your claims
Give your opinion
Provide support
Conclusion
Restate your argument
Provide a plan of action
[Reference: University of Hawaii-West O’ahu. (1998). Writing a position paper. UHWO Writing Center]