Discussion: Context for Nursing Practice

NOW F OR AN ORIGINAL PAPER ASSIGNMENT:Discussion: Context for Nursing Practice

healthcare researchers working in multi-professional research teams. More in-depth preparation in Essential II (Organizational and System Leadership) will provide knowledge useful for nursing management roles. In some instances, graduates of master’s in nursing programs will seek to fill roles as educators. As outlined in Essential IX, all master’s-prepared nurses will develop competence in applying teaching/learning principles in work with patients and/or students across the continuum of care in a variety of settings. However, as recommended in the Carnegie Foundation report (2009), Educating Nurses: A Call for Radical Transformation, those individuals, as do all master’s graduates, who choose a nurse educator role require preparation across all nine Essential areas, including graduate-level clinical practice content and experiences. In addition, a program preparing individuals for a nurse educator role should include preparation in curriculum design and development, teaching methodologies, educational needs assessment, and learner-centered theories and methods. Master’s prepared nurses may teach patients and their families and/or student nurses, staff nurses, and variety of direct-care providers. The master’s prepared nurse educator differs from the BSN nurse in depth of his/her understanding of the nursing discipline, nursing practice, and the added pedagogical skills. To teach students, patients, and caregivers regarding health promotion, disease prevention, or disease management, the master’s-prepared nurse educator builds on baccalaureate knowledge with graduate- level content in the areas of health assessment, physiology/pathophysiology, and pharmacology to strengthen his/her scientific background and facilitate his/her understanding of nursing and health-related information. Those master’s students who aspire to faculty roles in baccalaureate and higher degree programs will be advised that additional education at the doctoral level is needed (AACN, 2008).

Context for Nursing Practice

Health care in the United States and globally is changing dramatically. Interest in evolving health care has prompted greater focus on health promotion and illness prevention, along with cost-effective approaches to high acuity, chronic disease management, care coordination, and long-term care. Public concerns about cost of health care, fiscal sustainability, healthcare quality, and development of sustainable solutions to healthcare problems are driving reform efforts. Attention to affordability and accessibility of health care, maintaining healthy environments, and promoting personal and community responsibility for health is growing among the public and policy makers.