Curriculum
Curriculum
Philosophy
The faculty of the Louise Herrington School of Nursing believes in the philosophy, the Christian mission, and the goals of Baylor University and, in harmony with these, provides an environment in which the nursing student may grow in professional competence and Christian spirit.
The faculty believes nursing is a service to humanity and is motivated by love for God and society. A commitment to this belief provides a foundation for teaching and learning in the School of Nursing.
The faculty believes the aim of undergraduate and graduate education in nursing is to provide an opportunity for personal and professional development. Professional education includes a study of the arts, sciences and humanities and enhanced in a Christian setting beginning at the baccalaureate level. The faculty believes that baccalaureate education in nursing is the basis for professional practice as a nurse generalist and should be equally accessible to generic students and to other students who have previous formal educational experience in nursing. The nurse generalist has the knowledge, skills, and competencies necessary for assuming the responsibility of entry-level professional nursing positions and for graduate study in nursing.
The faculty believes specialization occurs at a graduate level of education in the refinement of existing skills, expansion of knowledge, and development of competencies in a specific area of nursing practice. The faculty believes that individuals learn in a variety of ways. Learning is a life-long process built upon previous knowledge and experience. Learning occurs in a variety of situations and settings and should become self-directed over time. Knowledge acquisition, critical inquiry, reflection and decision-making prepare learners to respond to issues that confront them as professionals.
The faculty believes that effective teaching employs a variety of strategies to foster independence, critical thinking, and self-discovery. The teacher as a facilitator strives to be innovative and flexible in planning, implementing, and evaluating educational experiences consistent with curriculum goals and objectives. The teacher as a scholar participates in endeavors to acquire, create, and use new knowledge. As members of the academic community, the faculty recognizes that its professional role includes formal teaching, scholarly pursuits, and community service.
The faculty believes the individual, in constant interaction with the changing environment, responds as a unified whole to life situations. In addition, the individual impacts the environment and his/her own welfare through a personal relationship with the Creator. As an integral part of a family, group or community the individual affects, and is affected by both culture and society.
The faculty believes that health is a basic human condition which is uniquely perceived by individuals and groups. Health is a dynamic state of human functioning wherein clients exist with varying degrees of wellness and illness. The higher the level of human need fulfillment, the more optimal the state of wellness for the client. Individuals have the right to pursue that level of health perceived by them to be optimal, taking into account their social and cultural definitions of health. The level of health that individuals can attain is influenced by the levels of health of families and communities of which they are a part and with whom they coexist.
The faculty believes that professional nursing is the caring for individuals, families, groups, communities, and society through the diagnosis and treatment of the responses to actual or potential threats to health and through facilitating human need fulfillment. Professional nursing is a practice discipline which has evolved from a rich, unique heritage. It encompasses the arts, sciences, ethics, and politics. Nursing has a dynamic body of knowledge based on nursing research and on the application of theories and concepts from the physical and behavioral sciences and the humanities. Professional nursing utilizes the nursing process in a caring, interactive manner to promote optimal wellness. Through a variety of roles, professional nursing contributes to the improvement of health care services to society.
Purposes
- Provide graduates with a Christian foundation for continued personal and professional growth.
- Prepare beginning nurse generalists who can provide professional nursing care based on bio-psychosocial-spiritual theories and principles to individuals, families, groups, communities, and society in a variety of settings.
- Prepare a practitioner to assume the responsibilities of a professional person in contemporary society.
- Provide a foundation for graduate study in nursing.
Program Outcomes
The curriculum is designed to provide learning experiences that will prepare the graduates to:
- Synthesize liberal education and Christian principles in safe, compassionate professional nursing care.
- Practice as a professional nurse to facilitate human need fulfillment of individuals, families, groups, communities and populations across the lifespan in a variety of healthcare settings.
- Utilize the human needs framework and current evidence as a basis for professional nursing practice.
- Utilize information management systems to deliver, evaluate, and improve the safety and effectiveness of patient care.
- Demonstrate effective communication, collaboration, and care coordination as a member of the inter-professional health care team to improve health outcomes.
- Demonstrate professional, ethical, moral, legal, and spiritual concepts into one’s practice within a global environment.
- Synthesize leadership and management strategies in the delivery of health promotion and disease prevention at the individual and population level.
- Demonstrate understanding of healthcare policy, finance, and regulatory standards on quality outcomes and nursing practice.