Mission and teaching philosophy for the Balsdon School of Nursing

¶ … worked to develop a mission statement, as well as identifying a program philosophy for a nursing program that would allow older adults who are already nurses to move from RN to BSN. Many nurses are doing this today in order to remain relevant in the field, and also to move forward into other jobs within their current healthcare organizations or enhance the staff positions they currently hold (Longe, 2013). The mission statement is an important part of a nursing program. The statement that was developed by the author is: "The Balsdon School of Nursing (TBSN) will transpire as a leader in educating professional registered nurses to meet the health care needs of Central Wisconsin. The faculty strives to encourage student success through quality in teaching, scholarship, practice, and service."

After the mission statement had been fully developed it was able to be used as a guide in developing a teaching philosophy. That philosophy will be used to address how knowledge is created and expanded and how learning can be facilitated through teaching styles. Since each teaching style transmits knowledge from faculty to students differently, it is very important to find and utilize the right styles so students can learn as much as possible. The beliefs and thoughts on various teaching styles and the transfer of knowledge all needs to be considered in order to address this successfully. When a faculty member transmits knowledge, he or she does so through the beliefs held, as those beliefs are translated into the actions taken within the academic environment. The currently developed philosophy is important to discuss here, and is as follows:

The Balsdon School of Nursing (TBSN) is designed to offer learner-centered nursing programs that are both innovative and outstanding, and that involve students in curricula that is progressively complex. This prepares them for the undertaking of important roles within complex healthcare settings that are interdisciplinary and diverse. Additionally, these students are then exposed to different environments which can provide them with the knowledge and information they will need in a healthcare setting that continues to change and develop. The faculty's commitment is designed to nurture an environment that is open, and in which students are able to feel engaged in their work and surroundings.

With evidence-based practice, these students can become humanizing, caring, compassionate individuals and move into healthcare systems that are technologically focused and outcome-oriented (Fitzpatrick & Kazer, 2011). Students' lives are transformed through the promotion of patterns of life-long learning. This continuous learning helps students disseminate and apply the results of scholarly work, so they are better able to meet their career goals and properly care for patients at every level. The mission of TBSN is an important one, and designed to help any student focused on going from RN to BSN, with a particular focus on older nurses who wish to add to their abilities in their current career.

According to Billings & Halstead (2012), the mission of a school must address the knowledge and technological explosion, critical thinking and problem solving, multiculturalism, and communication in response to current and modern changes occurring in today's world. Research has also demonstrated that student enrollment is influenced by the degree of affinity with the mission statement of the school (David, Ruhe, Lee, & Rajadhyaksha, 2007). This mission statement, therefore, defines the institution's purpose and its responsibility to students, faculty, and the community. By ensuring that the mission statement and vision of the school is a strong one, it is more likely that students will get attracted to the school, because they have a better understanding of what they will receive when it comes to the education they need in their nursing career.

As a part of this assignment, the author will introduce here a selection of organizing framework that meshes with the philosophy, vision, and mission addressed above. This framework will contain the concepts of person, environment, health, and nursing, in order to remain comprehensive.

Purpose of Organizing Frameworks

Billings & Halstead (2012) write extensively about the purpose behind, and value within, organizing frameworks. They state that the purpose behind the construction of an organizing framework is to effectively provide a design for faculty and students to follow. This design should be clear, and should provide students with information about the knowledge that is important in current nursing practice (Billings & Halstead, 2012). Without making the effort to delineate this information, students and faculty members can fall behind in what they understand to be accurate when it comes to current values and guidelines for evidence-based practice in the nursing profession.

Conclusion

When it comes to an organizing framework, the goal is to indicate the development of a well-rounded curriculum for nursing (Fitzpatrick & Kazer, 2011; Longe, 2013). This is essential for any academic institution that plans to teach nurses how to do their jobs effectively and that plans to help nurses make the transition from RN to BSN with success. For TBSN, the framework designed provides effective guidance so that students and faculty will clearly understand what is valuable when it comes to current nursing practice. Too many schools today are ignoring evidence-based practice, when they should be putting their focus squarely on it and how much it can bring to the lives and careers of nurses who need to understand how to care for the whole patient and not just treat a disease or condition.

Selecting Betty Neuman's System Model is among the best ways in which to advance the goals of TBSN and help nurses successfully complete their education from RN to BSN. The holistic style and approach used by Neuman in her model is exactly what TBSN plans to use in order to ensure that nurses are being taught all they need to know when it comes to interacting with patients on many different levels. The sooner more nurses see patients as more than just a collection of symptoms, the sooner those patients will be able to get the best care they can receive for their health problems.

That can help restore these patients to an optimal level of health, and can also help them move toward learning more about their environment so they can make changes that would improve it for them. Patients who are treated as whole people by nurses are also more willing to adjust their lifestyle to meet what they need to do in order to be healthier, because they feel more highly valued as human beings. By focusing on what nurses can really bring to the profession, TBSN will provide quality education and well-trained nurses to help patients live better lives.