Mission,  Goals & Expected Outcomes 

• Mission  
• Philosophy  
• Goals  
• Expected Outcomes

Mission Statement
The Department of Nursing, as an integral part of St. Ambrose University, holds a philosophy that is consistent with the mission and beliefs of the University.  The faculty assumes the responsibility to educate baccalaureate and graduate nurses within the framework of St. Ambrose University’s Christian beliefs and values.  The Department of Nursing is committed to program excellence, service to the community, and development of a professional nurse with appropriate balance of caring, ethical sensitivity, and critical thinking.

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Philosophy 
The Department of Nursing supports the beliefs of St. Ambrose University.  Our philosophy reflects value based education, freedom tempered by responsibility, professional and career education built on the liberal arts and sciences, and service to others based on achievement of the learner’s fullest potential.

People are holistic and live in dynamic environments.  They are worthy of respect dignity, and justice.  People function as individuals and within groups, families, organizations, and communities.  They have a life-long capacity for growth.

Health is a dynamic state of being.  It incorporates all levels of wellness and illness, and is determined by internal and external environments.  Individuals’ families’ and societies’ perceptions of health influence their behavior toward maintaining and optimizing the equilibrium of the environments.

Environment comprises the internal and external forces which impact health.  The environment includes physical, psychological, spiritual, economic, cultural, geographic, technological, social, and political forces.  The interaction between the nurse and the client occurs within the context of dynamic environments.

Nursing is a dynamic, autonomous profession.  Nurses are concerned with people in interaction with their environments.  The nursing process, incorporating intellectual, interpersonal, and technical competencies, frames the delivery of nursing care to individuals, families, and communities.  The purpose of nursing is to achieve outcomes of health promotion, health maintenance, illness management, health restoration, or death with dignity.  Outcomes are achieved using a caring, holistic approach.  Nursing practice encompasses many roles including clinician, teacher, counselor, consultant, collaborator, nurturer, and manager.  Within these roles, the nurse serves as a client advocate and change agent in providing care in a variety of settings.

The nursing profession advances through the input of its members.  Nurses have the responsibility to support the profession through:  membership in the professional organization, leadership, scholarly endeavors, and political activity.

Education for the practice of professional nursing is a continual process.  Baccalaureate nursing education is built on a foundation in the liberal arts, and the behavioral and biophysical sciences, and provides opportunities to increase the ability to think critically, to intervene responsibly, and to communicate effectively.  Educators and students comprise a community of learners.  Educators facilitate learning and provide an environment that engenders freedom and respect for all participants, encourages the spirit of inquiry, fosters the development of self-direction and personal responsibility, and empowers students to be active participants in the learning process.

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Undergraduate Program Goals

1. Develop beginning level professional nurses who use caring, ethics, and standards of care to guide their practice.
2. Foster the development of individuals who are prepared for today’s and tomorrow’s challenges and assume responsibility for the advancement of humanity and nursing.
3. Prepare program graduates to pursue additional education.

Graduate Program Goals

1. Develop professional nurse leaders who use ethics, research, and theory to guide their practice.
2. Develop leadership for the achievement of organizational planning, analysis, and initiation of change.
3. To prepare program graduates to pursue doctoral education.

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Undergraduate Expected Outcomes

1. Synthesize knowledge from the liberal arts and the sciences in utilizing the nursing process to deliver compassionate, safe, holistic nursing care.
2. Demonstrate use of critical thinking in making informed judgments in various environmental contexts.
3. Demonstrate written, oral, and electronic communication competence and interpersonal relationship skills in a variety of clinical environments.
4. Demonstrate competence in performing therapeutic nursing interventions.
5. Validate existing practice and improve nursing care through research utilization.
6. Apply professional standards of practice incorporating legal, ethical, and financial accountability.
7. Participate with multidisciplinary colleagues to design, implement, and evaluate consumer-driven health care.
8. Participate in the ongoing development of the profession.
9. Demonstrate leadership through participation in educational, political, community, or organizational activities.
10. Participate in community service activities.

Graduate Expected Outcomes

1. Apply research to nursing practice, leadership, and management.
2. Develop management and leadership strategies to promote quality outcomes in health care for individuals, families and communities.
3. Synthesize concepts and theories from nursing, and management to form the basis for practice.
4. Evaluate ethical/legal/financial considerations in healthcare decision-making.

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