Examples of Mission Statements from other nursing programs

Yale School of Nursing

[http://nursing.yale.edu/About/missionStatement.html ]

Mission Statement

The ultimate mission of the Yale School of Nursing is to contribute to better health care for all people. Through the systematic study of the nature and effect of nursing practice, students are prepared to become effective nurse clinicians and nurse scholars capable of improving practice through sound clinical judgment, scholarship and research.

In this endeavor, we are mindful not only of our privilege and freedom as educators in this resource-filled private university, but also our responsibility and accountability with colleagues to consumers. The former allows us to be creative in our thinking and innovative in our practice, while the latter demands a commitment to implementation and a realism in our problem solving.

To accomplish our mission, it is necessary to provide settings for learning in which students may see the contributions of modern nursing to improving the quality of health care for all people through expert practice, research, and health policy. To develop patient-centered nurse clinicians/scholars, we must seek educational and clinical sites that provide an interdisciplinary setting where learning occurs in the context of delivering care that is organized around the patients' needs.

To assure that commitment to better health care for all people is met, it is necessary that our belief in a multi-racial, multi-cultural, non-sexist society be made operational. This requires learning environments where the approach to both patients and students is based on reason and respect for individual differences and free from bias and stereotypes. It is our responsibility to shape the design of health care and education systems, working with consumers and colleagues in the belief that improving patient care improves education and, likewise, improving education improves patient care.

Recognizing that this is a time of transition for nursing and for health care delivery, it will be necessary for the School to make serious obligation of faculty and administrative time and effort to affect consumers' and colleagues' acceptance of the changed capabilities of the profession. This must be done with equal dedication to the character of University life--scholarship in clinical service, building the bases in theory and research on which current and future education and practice depend.

Rush University College of Nursing

Our Mission

The mission of Rush University College of Nursing is to respond to the health needs of a culturally, socially and ethnically diverse society by preparing future generations of highly qualified clinician leaders in nursing, generating and disseminating knowledge that will contribute to the scientific basis of nursing practice and providing leadership for the advancement of nursing education. The mission supports and sustains the goals of Rush University Medical Center through the education of nurses whose practice is patient-centered and grounded in evidence, through clinical research and applications and through innovation in clinical teaching.

University of Colorado at Denver, College of Nursing

[http://www.nursing.ucdenver.edu/academics/conphilosophy.htm ]

Philosophy

The College of Nursing, as an integral part of its parent institution, is dedicated to the pursuit of higher learning grounded in the arts, sciences, and humanities. The College of Nursing shares the missions of the University of Colorado Denver: improving human health by educating health practitioners, delivering exemplary health care, and conducting research in the health sciences. The missions of the institution are directed toward a diverse community and the university acknowledges, values, fosters and benefits from the unique qualities, rich histories and wide range of cultural values. The philosophy and mission of the College of Nursing are focused on education, research, reflective practice, and service within nursing.

The College of Nursing faculty believe nursing is a professional discipline with academic and practice dimensions. As a practice profession, nursing serves society through delivery of direct and indirect health care services to individuals, families and communities in local, regional, national, and international contexts. Nursing is a theory-guided, evidence-based practice, focused on holistic, relationship-centered caring that facilitates health and healing. Nursing is committed to ensuring quality health care for all. Nurses engage in political leadership to improve the health and health care of the society they serve. As a discipline responsible for knowledge generation, nursing is committed to:

• A search for knowledge regarding human experiences of health-illness-healing, the human/technology interface, environmental contexts of health care, and quality cost effective outcomes;
• Development and testing of explanatory models of health, illness, and healing to guide professional practice;
• Positive influence on the environmental contexts of health and health care; and
• Promotion of quality and cost effective outcomes of nursing care. The College of Nursing faculty believe that generation of disciplinary knowledge is founded upon pluralistic forms of inquiry, continual with nursing practice, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

The College of Nursing faculty believe that higher education in nursing is responsible for preparing nurses for professional and discipline-related roles through a competency based curriculum emphasizing practice that is relational, reflective, responsive, respectful, and caring. Thus, the faculty believe in the equivalent importance of undergraduate nursing education, graduate nursing education, and nursing education to prepare entry-level nurses with a professional doctorate. The faculty believe in education’s responsibility to society in advocacy for social justice, and in education’s need to be responsive to society’s needs and changing local, national and global health care environments. They are committed to promoting reflective practice, and leadership for social change with inherent reciprocity among nursing practice, theory, and research in all educational programs. The faculty further believe that preparation for various nursing roles requires education in the arts and sciences foundational to nursing and in substantive disciplinary knowledge regarding caring in the human health experience across the lifespan. The faculty believe that contemporary nursing education and practice require a commitment to diversity, interdisciplinary partnerships in practice and research, and a grounding of education in faculty practice. Faculty practice models expert care and community service; provides opportunities to develop innovative models of health care delivery; improves access to care for underserved populations; engages in clinical inquiry; and tests nursing theories. Contemporary nursing education also is facilitated by articulated degree programs, flexible and self-directed programs that incorporate lifelong learning, innovative educational technologies, and inter-institutional collaboration.

Re-ratified 6/23/08 General Faculty Meeting

Boston College William F. Connell School of Nursing

[http://www.bc.edu/schools/son/aboutus.html

Mission Statement

The mission of the William F. Connell School of Nursing is to prepare professional nurses whose practice reflects a humanistic ethic and is scientifically based, technically competent, and highly compassionate. The Boston College nurse learns to think critically and to develop leadership skills throughout the baccalaureate, master, and doctoral programs. The school aims to develop and disseminate knowledge for the advancement of professional practice and the improvement of health care by providing an environment that supports the personal development and scholarship of its faculty and students. The mission of the Boston College Connell School of Nursing is in keeping with that of its parent institution, with an emphasis on the development of the whole person. The School of Nursing focuses on preparing each student as a life-long learner, as a health professional, and as someone who will use knowledge in service to others.

The graduate of the baccalaureate program is prepared as a generalist to provide care to individuals, families and groups, arriving at diagnostic, ethical, and therapeutic judgments to promote, maintain, and restore health. The graduate of the master's program is prepared with advanced knowledge and skill for providing and leading quality patient care. He or she is prepared to advance the discipline through leadership, mentorship, and research-based practice. The graduate of the doctoral program contributes to the development of knowledge through research and theory-building and the dissemination of findings in scholarly forums.

Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing

[http://www.ohsu.edu/xd/education/schools/school-of-nursing/about/mission-statement.cfm ]

Mission Statement

The Oregon Health & Science University School of Nursing is a statewide system of higher education whose faculty, staff, and students extend to five campuses with major educational access sites throughout Oregon.

Vision

We envision health care that is expert, compassionate and just.

Mission

Our mission is leadership in nursing and health care through thoughtful innovation in healing, teaching and discovery.

Values

We value integrity, respect, social justice, diversity, collaboration and the science, art, and heart of health care. The school’s faculty includes nationally and internationally renowned scholars, educators, and clinicians dedicated to excellence in the pursuit of knowledge and discovery, the holistic and compassionate care of individuals and communities, and the professional development of each member of the school within a nurturing environment. Baccalaureate and master’s degree programs focus on the development of critical thinking and judgment, understanding of health systems and economics, interdisciplinary care, public health and communications in a variety of health care settings. Master’s degree programs also prepare students for advanced practice or as public health professionals. Doctoral and postdoctoral programs prepare graduates for scholarly inquiry, independent research, and leadership in the health care arena. The members of the school value an educational community that fosters excellence, creativity, self-reflection, accountability, respect for diversity, and lifelong learning.

The five campuses of OHSU School of Nursing (Ashland, Klamath Falls, La Grande, Monmouth and Portland) are internationally recognized for excellence in research. School of Nursing faculty members believe that nursing science is not an end in itself, but rather a systematic process used to enhance nursing practice and improve the health care of the individuals, families and communities. The school consistently ranks among the top nursing schools funded by the National Institutes of Health. The combined efforts at the five campuses contribute to education, practice, research and technology that enable students and faculty to provide advanced education and health care services throughout Oregon.