Mission & Program Philosophy

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Mission and Program Philosophy

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 an appropriate balance of caring, ethical sensitivity, and critical thinking.

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 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 prepares graduates for entry-level professional practice in a wide variety of health care settings. This 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.

Graduate students are prepared at the advanced level to function in nursing management. These students are prepared to function in leadership roles in a variety of settings. Graduate education is built upon a foundation that is based on nursing, management, and leadership theory, and research. This foundation will provide students the opportunity to manage ethically and effectively in the evolving interdisciplinary healthcare environment.

These programs serves as a basis for further graduate study and continued life long learning. 

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.

Graduate Program Goals

• Develop professional nurse leaders who use ethics, research, and theory to guide their practice.

• Develop leadership for the achievement of organizational planning, analysis, and initiation of change.

• To prepare program graduates to pursue doctoral education.

Graduate Program Objectives

• Apply research to nursing practice, leadership, and management.

• Develop management and leadership strategies to promote quality outcomes in health care delivery.