NURSING CURRICULUM

NURSING CURRICULUM

Nursing Curriculum

Introduction

Health care provisions are essential for the survival and well being of any society. In those societies where health care facilities are conveniently accessible to the common men, prosperity and harmony reigns supreme. Nursing plays a central role in delivering health care, and so is critical to any nation's well-being. No other health care professional has such a vast and dynamic role. Nursing is defined as a set of actions that are aimed at providing care to the individuals who are ill, mentally incapable, or dying. This is a profession for providing help and assistance to those already suffering. Nurses share the burdens and the grief. These are people who lend shoulders when others desert the patient and go away. It is their responsibility to promote health, and help in preventing illness. Nurses provide health management services to people of all kinds of demographics all the time. Their role is far-reaching. They are steadfast, hard working individuals and their job requires clinical precision round-the-clock.

The history of nursing dates back to 1830s when nursing was not being respected as a profession and socially unsound women used to enter this activity without any education background or knowledge whatsoever. It was Florence Nightingale, “the lady of the lamp”, who was first recognized as a nurse in the 19th century and known far and wide now as the founder of nursing. Her contributions to nursing patients emerged during the 1854's Crimean war where she selflessly provided care to the injured soldiers and inhabitants. She was the one who emphasized upon the education and training needs of these nurses, highlighting its critical importance. Though statistician and politician by profession, her contributions are worthwhile and unforgettable as far as this noble profession is concerned (Donaldson, 1978).

Current Nursing Theories

The traditional perspective of nursing has been wholly influenced by medical orientation. Nursing practices, education, training and research had the impressions of medical orientation that was deep rooted. The effects were limited and the implications, connected to medicine only. Nursing had to adopt a conceptual base so that it may be considered as a separate profession having its own distinct characteristics. This was the challenge in the 21st century when the theoretical models for nursing largely depended on recognizing it as a separate distinct profession with a unique conceptual base. Researches conducted during this period, focused on reviving the conceptual framework that governs the mechanisms of nursing. A conceptual model of nursing could provide important insights on the underlying themes of nursing while also developing theories that will mutually benefit other related professions as well. Some specific social criteria had to be analyzed by the nursing theorists to develop models of behavior and specific nursing service orientations (Smith, 2008).

The theoretical works in the profession of nursing can be studied under certain headings. These headings are based on the levels of knowledge structure. These are:

Meta paradigm (Person, Environment, Health & Nursing)

Nursing philosophies.

Conceptual models and Grand ...