The Development of Nursing Profession - Scholarship Essay Example

? and Faculty Issue 13-Dec-11 and Faculty Issue Introduction: The development of nursing profession - from the catholic monks of the Dark Ages, to nursing care provided by prisoners in 17th century, to the dedicated services of the famous Florence Nightingale and to the development of nursing degrees and research courses in modern era, is in many ways one of the most dramatic events in the history of science. Due to their versatile role in various health care settings, nurses act as a backbone guaranteeing the efficiency of other personnel of health care profession. Despite increased awareness about the dire need of qualified and competent nurses, ironically the education of nurses continues to be one of the most neglected sectors in industrialized and technologically advanced nations of the world. As the world continues to progress medically, the need for competent nurses continues to rise. Over the past few years, the role of nurses in a health care system has changed significantly due to new biomedical discoveries and the development of technologically advanced medical machines. Furthermore, the changes in the patterns of health care services have increased the demand of highly qualified and competent nurses. The specific roles performed by nurses can never be fully described as they are not only complex but are equally diverse as well. In modern society, nurses provide palliative care by direct contact, computer, phone, and also across state lines. Therefore, nurses need to be highly educated to cope with diverse work environment pressures and challenges. (Benner et al 2010). Education Crisis: Today, most industrialized and medically advanced nations face a shortage of highly qualified and competent nurses. There are numerous reasons for the current shortage of nurses but one of the major reasons is ineffectiveness of nursing education programs which are simply incapable of efficiently teaching nursing science, natural sciences, social sciences, technology and humanities. (Benner et al 2010). The profession of nursing requires depth and conceptual knowledge of various branches of science. Therefore, in an effort to provide conceptual knowledge, the classroom faculties have unfortunately burdened the students with vast a curriculum which is not only difficult to cope with but has proved to be quite ineffective as well. Vast difficult curriculum coupled with improperly trained faculty has resulted in a drastic decrease in the number of competent nurses available to provide palliative and other associated services in various health care settings. (Benner et al 2010). Due to the ineffectiveness of teaching programs, the profession of nursing continues to struggle to develop the skills and attributes needed to cope with modern day medical challenges. The advanced practice role on the delivery of palliative health care has a potential impact on the stability of a nation which is why the expanding role of nurses requires effective training programs. There are various reasons which are responsible for the ineffectiveness of nursing teaching programs; some of the major reasons are analyzed in this paper along with their antecedents, current status, and future implications. The paper also makes recommendations about what needs to be done in order to train nurses in an effort to effectively mold them to cope with the challenging and dynamic medical environment. One of the major reasons leading to ineffectiveness of nursing teaching programs is the shortage of highly qualified teaching staff. The shortage of qualified faculty has posed tremendous problems for nursing schools. The lack of substantial federal funding is the underlying reason for the shortage of effective teacher training programs which have inevitably been responsible for ineffective nursing training programs. Even forty years after the approval of The Nursing Act of 1964, federal funding still suffers great fluctuations. (Benner et al 2010). The lack of steady federal funding has led to the influx of relatively under educated teachers into nursing schools which are not quite capable of providing the level of education needed. Therefore, the lack of professional educators has directly promoted the ineffectiveness of nursing education. In addition, the problem of decreased federal funding coupled with shrinking pool of qualified teachers continues to plague the stability of the health care profession. The fact that qualified pool of nursing teachers is rapidly shrinking continues to scare policy makers and government agencies but they are simply not willing to remedy the situation by providing substantial funds. The magnitude of the problem can be analyzed from the fact that in 2006 alone, 42,866 qualified applicants were refused admission because the administration of nursing schools were simply not capable of taking on more students due to severe shortage of teachers. (Benner et al 2010). Unfortunately, as the number of required nurses continues to rise, the number of rejected qualified individuals also continues to rise. The situation has become more alarming as from 2008 onwards the federal funding has been decreased by 33 percent. (Benner et al 2010). Another reason for decreased effectiveness of nursing education is the fact that the education programs do not promote the development of critical thinking and leadership skills. Critical thinking and leadership skills are essential for the development of skills necessary to cope with emergency situations. Therefore, teaching programs are simply not capable of providing leadership knowledge which is a prerequisite for the stability, growth and effectiveness of nursing profession. The development of leadership skills should be the first priority of nursing educational programs because that is the only way to redefine and modify the traditional caregiver role. The modification will not only help develop more educated nurses but will also provide additional skills to cope with today’s uncertain medical environment. The RN to BSN and graduate nursing programs lack leadership education model which has only intensified the problems faced by nursing schools. (Feldman et al 2005). Redefining Educational Programs: “We are born weak, we need strength; helpless, we need aid; foolish, we need reason. All that we lack at birth, that we need when we come to man’s estate, is the gift of education.’’ so broadly understood from what we learn “from nature, from men, and from things,’’ the gift if education may make us who we are, but is not ours to give. (Gutmann, A.1987). In today’s fast paced world, where time and distance are compressed, the importance of medical learning and its implementation has become vital for survival. Today’s medical society requires sophisticated, well developed cross cultural dexterity for which educated nurses are a pre requisite. Therefore, today the need for medical education to be facilitated in multiple ways has become greater than ever before. (Gutmann, A.1987). The profession of nursing cannot flourish without adequate and steady federal funding. Therefore, the government needs to shift its attention towards the development of nursing profession by providing substantial funds. Otherwise, a sufficient number of highly qualified nurses will not be available to provide their palliative duties in a nation. On the other hand, the entire curriculum is in dire need of improvement. The educational programs need to be redefined in such a way that they become capable of developing more stable, resourceful and technically qualified nurses. The development and inclusion of Leadership Education Model is absolutely necessary in an effort to increase the effectiveness of nursing education programs. The leadership skills development has not been emphasized in undergraduate and graduate educational programs which have resulted in a vast number of nurses with no leadership skills. It has been observed that nurses who lack leadership skills are less capable of effectively communicating with their patients. Since, nurses deal with patients directly; the need for good leadership skills cannot be sidelined. Therefore, an innovative leadership development program is crucial for the production of highly qualified nurses. On the other hand, the curriculum needs to be relaxed as well. The development of leadership and critical thinking skills are important because nurses contact directly with patients and they are responsible for dealing with different attitudes of different individuals. Nurses with good leadership skills will be able to promote efficient development of psychomotor skills in their patients. Moreover, they will be able to persuade patients who refuse to follow treatment regimes. On the other hand, leadership skills enable nurses to act appropriately in case of an emergency by coordinating the activities of other personnel. (Feldman et al 2005). The overloaded curriculum has only worsened the situation because the students are simply not capable of coping with it. On the other hand, the increase in the number of nurses is not going to improve the outcomes of patient care. The outcomes will only improve if hospitals are staffed with more nurses having a baccalaureate degree therefore, the fact remains the same: in order to increase the effectiveness of nurses, we need to increase the effectiveness of educational programs. Furthermore, the education-practice gap is widening day by day and researchers are extremely concerned about the fact that the students are not being taught to develop the ability of reflecting their education in practical settings. (Feldman et al 2005). The health care profession is a practice driven both by research and advanced technologies therefore; it is becoming harder for traditional nurses lacking proper education to cope with modern medical challenges. The practice-education gap can only be closed when an effective education system is implemented. On the hand, a pragmatic attitude needs to be developed in an effort to enhance the learner capabilities of students aspiring to be highly competent nurses. Adult learners can only learn effectively if they are motivated intrinsically and extrinsically. It has been observed that adult learning is greatly enhanced when they are informed about the value of the skill, knowledge or attitude being taught. Therefore, it is an efficient way of increasing the effectiveness of educational programs i.e. informing the students about the importance and value of the knowledge they are acquiring. Moreover, it is equally important to meet learner expectations in an effort to transform learning experience into a more meaningful one. Therefore, learner expectations such as good teachers and highly competent classroom environment should be provided in an effort to enhance educational process. (Bastable, S. B. 2003). The profession of nursing requires rational care, knowledge and clinical judgment which can only be provided by highly qualified and competent teachers. The importance of qualified teachers in effective learning is immense. Nurses are confronted with urgent situations every day and such situations require definitive quick response which can be only developed with thorough guidance. The role of nurses in health care profession has changed tremendously over the last sixty years. In most hospitals, physicians function solely as diagnosticians and prescribers of treatment regimes and it is the duty of the nurse to administer these treatment regimes and to record their effectiveness. Therefore, nurses need to be capable of recognizing warning signs and act appropriately to remedy the situation. These capabilities require a high level of skill and knowledge which can only be developed by a professional teacher. Therefore, the government officials and policy makers need to realize the dire need of effective teacher training programs because less qualified teachers produce less qualified nurses. It is a fact that nursing educational environment is a teacher centered one. Like other typical teacher centered paradigms, the effectiveness of educational programs depends extensively on competence of the instructor. An important step in elevating the current status of nursing education programs is to convert qualified nurses into part time teachers for educating other nurses for professional practice. (Feldman et al 2005). Future Implications: The health care system of the 21st century is highly sophisticated and requires collaborative efforts of multiple health care professionals. Thus, the whole health care system suffers if nurses are not able to perform their duties effectively. The stability of a health care system depends directly on nurses because they perform various duties such as administering treatment regimes and providing palliative care. (Rosdahl et al 2008). In most hospitals, nurses are not under constant supervision and therefore, must be able to work efficiently on their own. Thus, if nurses are not highly qualified they will not be able to work effectively on their own which could lead to medical accidents such as administering wrong doses. (Yeo, M. T. 2010). In most hospitals, nurses are entrusted with the task of administering treatment regimes thus it is immensely important for them to be able to accurately measure doses and administer them appropriately. (Thompson et al 2001). Thus, it will lead to tremendous problems in health care systems if nurses administer wrong doses or do not use proper routes of administration. Over the past few years, the responsibilities of physicians have been shifted to nurses thus the need of highly qualified nurses is greater than ever before. Psychomotor skills such as self administration of insulin need to be developed in patients and such skills are developed under the supervision of nurses. If nurses are not highly qualified then they simply will not be able to promote the development of effective psychomotor skills. Moreover, it is the duty of a nurse to keep record of patients and clinic appointments. Therefore, under qualified nurses are not able to efficiently keep track of patient history and other issues. (Young et al 2007). On the other hand, under qualified nurses’ lack the skills and knowledge required to deal with urgent situations. Therefore, the efficiency of a health care system is significantly compromised if nurses are not able to act appropriately in emergency situations. In addition, nurses are required to prepare medications by utilizing multiple techniques of drug reconstitution therefore, under qualified nurses will not be able to prepare accurate dosage forms. In addition, under qualified nurses so not have proper knowledge about drug compatibilities and incompatibilities therefore they are simply not capable of ensuring patient safety. Furthermore, inadequately trained nurses are not capable of adjusting and titrating therapies in accordance with patient response. Modern day medical machines are highly sophisticated and technologically advanced. Thus, nurses lacking technical knowledge are not capable of efficiently operating such machines. The efficiency of any health care system is extensively depended upon the competence of its nurses thus; the inefficiency of nurses is amplified as the inefficiency of the whole system. (Rosdahl et al 2008). Conclusion: Qualified nurses are highly competent individuals with good clinical judgment skills and leadership qualities. Such skills can only be instilled with sound theoretical and practical knowledge. In accordance with recent statistical information, the number of registered nurses working in hospitals has decreased and thus the demand for qualified nurses is greater than ever before. (McDonald et al 1991). The problem of rapidly shrinking pool of qualified teachers coupled with overloaded ineffective curriculum has proved to be two of the major obstacles faced by nursing profession in modern society. The government officials need to realize the importance of nurses in health care systems and should recognize the fact that without substantial federal funding the profession of nursing simply cannot flourish. The role of nurses in a health care system is very critical because they are ones who are responsible for providing treatment regimes and monitor dose response relationships in an effort to adjust the dose accordingly. (Breaking the boundaries 1998). The advancement of nursing practice is only possible with the development of effective leadership and associated skills. Therefore, it has become absolutely necessary to sought answers to each of the following questions: “Should only those nurses be allowed to practice who hold a baccalaureate degree?” “Why do medically advanced and industrialized nations of the world face a shortage of highly qualified nurses?” “Despite the increased awareness on health care issues, why does the training of nurses continue to be one of the most neglected sectors in most industrialized nations of the world?” The answer to these and similar questions are simple; the government is simply not paying enough attention to the production of highly qualified nurses. I strongly believe that only those nurses should be allowed to practice which hold a baccalaureate degree as this would inevitably increase the efficiency of heath care systems. References: Benner, P., Sutphen, M., Leonard, V., Day, L., & Shulman, L. S. (2010). Educating nurses: A call for radical transformation. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Rosdahl, C. B., & Kowalski, M. T. (2008). Textbook of basic nursing. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Bastable, S. B. (2003). Nurse as educator: Principles of teaching and learning for nursing practice. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett. Young, L. E., & Paterson, B. L. (2007). Teaching nursing: Developing a student-centered learning environment. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Feldman, H. R., & Greenberg, M. J. (2005). Educating nurses for leadership. New York: Springer Pub. Co. Berman, A., & Kozier, B. (2008). Kozier & Erb's fundamentals of nursing: Concepts, process, and practice. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson Prentice Hall. Gutmann, A. (1987). Democratic education. Princeton, N.J: Princeton University Press. Thompson, J. B., Kershbaumer, R. M., & Krisman-Scott, M. A. (2001). Educating advanced practice nurses and midwives: From practice to teaching. New York: Springer Pub. Co. Council of Deans and Heads of UK University Faculties for Nursing, Midwifery & Health Visiting. (1998). Breaking the boundaries: Educating nurses, midwives and health visitors for the millenium; a position paper. Council of Deans and Heads of UK University Faculties for Nursing, Midwifery & Health Visiting. McDonald, A. L., Tulloch, C., & Wellington Hospital. (1991). Wellington Hospital educating nurses for more than a century. Wellington, N.Z: Professional Services Unit, Wellington Hospital Board. Yeo, M. T. (2010). Concepts and cases in nursing ethics. Peterborough, Ont: Broadview Press. Read More