MISSION AND PHILOSOPHY STATEMENTS

Mission

The nursing program is designed to prepare individuals to take the licensing examination to become a registered nurse, to seek employment in beginning staff positions in the community, and to become safe and competent members of the nursing profession, engaging in lifelong learning, in an ever-changing health care environment.

Philosophy

The philosophy of the nursing faculty is in harmony with and supports the mission statement of Arapahoe Community College. We believe the philosophy is based on concepts related to the individual, environment, health, nursing/nursing practice, professionalism, and teaching/learning.

Each INDIVIDUAL is viewed as a unique, complex, holistic being with biological, psychological, social, cultural and spiritual dimensions. Individuals have diverse values and beliefs and possess dignity, unconditional worth and the inherent right to assume responsibility for the development of their own potential. As patients in a health care setting, individuals have the right and responsibility to request information about their health and health care.

ENVIRONMENT refers to the context in which nursing occurs, which ranges from the patient’s home to clinical agencies to society as a whole. A patient’s environment is a major determinant of their health/illness status. It can include spiritual, political, legal, ethical, physical, economic, spatial and temporal aspects in which the family, community, or healthcare exists.

HEALTH is a changing state on the wellness-illness continuum that is impacted by stressors in the internal and external environment. Individuals experience ILLNESS when factors in the internal and external environment compromise an individual’s ability to adapt to stressors resulting in disorders in physiological or psychological function.

NURSING/NURSING PRACTICE is a caring profession that is both an art and a science. Nursing is a complex and dynamic process that is scientifically based and requires critical thinking. Nurses use cognitive, psychomotor, and affective skills within the parameters of the nursing process to assist the individual experiencing actual and/or potential disorders in function. Nursing is directed toward promoting, maintaining, and restoring health and supporting death with dignity. Nursing practice employs critical thinking to carry out therapeutic and caring interventions and facilitate the nurse-patient relationship.

CARING/THERAPEUTIC INTERVENTIONS are individualized nursing interventions involving compassion, sensitivity, and showing empathy for the patient. Caring interventions require critical thinking, planning, collaboration and therapeutic communication between the patient and nurse.

PROFESSIONALISM requires that the student has a responsibility and an obligation to prepare for the role of registered nurse. Nursing is a scholarly profession that utilizes theories from nursing and other disciplines to guide its practice for the promotion of health, care of the sick, and support of individuals and families in the final stages of life. Students apply the Colorado Nurse Practice Act, the ANA Standards of Care and Code of Ethics to professional practice.

TEACHING/LEARNING concepts are put into practice by faculty to organize and evaluate learning in the classroom and in the clinical settings. Principles of adult learning as well as pedagogy are utilized to support the learning process through the acquisition of knowledge then applying that knowledge to a test question or a simulation or lab experience or in the clinical setting. Students demonstrate principles of teaching/learning throughout their nursing practice. Active learning is encouraged to enhance critical thinking skills and students are encouraged to make a commitment to life-long learning.

Program Outcomes:

By the end of the program the students will achieve the following:

1. 80% of the students will complete their program within 18 months of the projected completion date.
2. 85% of the students will successfully score at or above the National average score on the RN Exit Exam.
3. 100% of graduates will pass the NCLEX-RN exam at the national pass rate or above the 75% state level minimum.
4. 90% of graduates will have employment as an RN within nine months of graduation as measured on the employer survey tool.
5. 80% of graduates will rate the program as average or above average as measured on the student exit evaluation.

Student Learning Outcomes:

1. Integrate evidenced-based knowledge into clinical practice, using the nursing process to guide care and to maintain and promote the health of patients throughout the life span
2. Incorporate critical thinking skills and clinical reasoning in order to plan, deliver, prioritize and evaluate safe, holistic care of the individual.
3. Demonstrate effective communication skills through oral and written communication with the patient and members of the health care team.
4. Demonstrate caring interventions by delivering compassionate and culturally sensitive care to patients across the life-span and the health-wellness-illness continuum.
5. Display accountability by engaging in safe, competent professional practice under the Colorado Nurse Practice Act and in accordance with the ANA Nursing Code of Ethics.
6. Utilize management and leadership skills to coordinate care for patients through the use of current technology and by collaborating with the health care team.
7. Integrate teaching-learning principles through the development of teaching plans and assume responsibility for professional development through making a commitment to lifelong learning.