Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)

Vision

Dynamic nursing education, for today and for tomorrow, for individuals and the global community.

Mission

The Department of Nursing is committed to providing quality education that prepares resilient professional nurses who are caring and practice holistically to meet the every-changing challenges of the 21st Century through a culture of evidenced-based practice. Faculty will support students, peers, the College and the community in this mission through a collaborative, accepting environment and through relationships fostered by mentoring and role modeling.

Philosophy

The philosophy of the Baccalaureate Program of the Department of Nursing is reflective of the values and beliefs from which the NMC mission and core values were formulated.

The nursing faculty believe human beings are holistic and integrated. Each human being has dignity, basic rights and responsibilities, individual needs and a unique internal environment. The human interacts within the environment, which encompasses all external factors that affect the human's well being and speaks to physical, social and existential dimensions as well as various settings. The client is the human recipient of care - individual, family, group or community.

Health is viewed as a dynamic state of mental, physical, social and spiritual well being that maximizes the individual's ability to function in his or her environment. Illness is an alteration in the dynamic state of well being that leads to disharmony between the human self and the environment. Health promotion, illness prevention, maintenance and rehabilitation are facilitated by activities or programs directed toward enhancement, stabilization or restoration of a dynamic state of well being.

Nursing is a caring, creative, dynamic and interactive process that uses scientific and humanistic bodies of knowledge to assist the client in attainment of a dynamic state of well being with a focus on human responses to actual or potential health problems. The nursing curriculum focuses on Jean Watson's science of caring* and is based on the following assumptions. Nursing is concerned with promoting health, preventing illness, restoring health, and caring for the sick and dying. The practice of caring is an integral part of nursing and consists of the carative factors, which are those interventions that result in the satisfaction of human needs. The caring philosophy promotes health and human growth and accepts a human not only as he or she is now, but as whom he or she may become. A caring atmosphere is one that offers the development of potential while allowing the client to choose the best action at a given point in time. Caring is demonstrated and practiced interpersonally and uses the systematic nursing process approach.

The curricular framework incorporates a community-based approach that prepares students to build connections between knowledge and action in an increasingly interdependent world. Students develop the attributes of effective nursing professionals and responsible citizens through focused and meaningfully applied learning experiences. Communitybased education encompasses the concepts of health promotion, self care, prevention, collaboration and continuity of care within the context of culture and community.

The nursing faculty believe that nursing education uses the science of caring and builds on the application and synthesis of the biophysical, psychosocial, computer and information sciences and the humanities. Learning is a lifelong, continuous process through which humans acquire knowledge that results in changes of behavior, attitudes and/or ways of thinking. The faculty view teaching as an interactive process that uses a system of actions to promote the acquisition, application, integration and synthesis of knowledge. Optimal learning is enhanced by interaction with faculty members who use a variety of instructional strategies and settings. Faculty members serve as teachers, facilitators, resource personsevaluators and professional role models. Nursing education facilitates the student in developing interpersonal caring response skills and communication techniques that produce therapeutic interactions within the nurse-client relationship.

Completion of the baccalaureate nursing program prepares the graduate for professional practice as a nurse generalist, pursuit of advanced studies in nursing and enhancement of lifelong learning. The nurse generalist uses critical thinking, nursing theory, research, nursing process, carative factors and clinical skills while assuming responsibility and accountability for providing nursing care to clients in a variety of settings. Additionally, the nurse generalist is able to demonstrate leadership and management skills in organization, change, advocacy, coordination, collaboration and communication. Thus, the nurse generalist promotes the use of lifelong evidence-based and humanistic practice behaviors to change and respond to the health needs and well being of clients in a dynamic and diverse world.

*Jean Watson, Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring, 1985.

Graduates of the BSN program will:

1. Integrate culturally competent professional nursing care with clients while incorporating caring and the caritas processes to promote autonomy, altruism, human dignity, integrity and social justice.

2. Analyze alternative solutions based on scientific and humanistic rationale for situations encountered in professional nursing practice.

3. Incorporate professional communication in interactions with clients, colleagues and community partners.

4. Synthesize scientific and humanistic knowledge derived from theory and research in the provision of professional nursing care.

5. Evaluate skills and ongoing assessment into the process of planning, intervening, and evaluating the delivery of professional nursing care including health promotion, risk reduction, disease prevention, illness/disease management and rehabilitation to meet the health needs of clients.

6. Collaborate with clients and community partners as an agent to facilitate change within a global healthcare environment.

7. Assume professional responsibility and legal/ethical accountability in providing health care.

8. Evaluate research critically and use findings selectively in professional nursing practice.

9. Incorporate knowledge of health care system policy and of professional activism into nursing practice.

10. Integrate leadership and management skills as a professional caregiver, teacher and manager of client care.

Please develop a thoughtful and organized response to the questions below. Your response should be approximately two paragraphs for each question. The admissions committee is looking for responses that are not only well supported but that also use appropriate style and grammar. Be sure to include your name and program on the document itself. You may attach the responses to an email sent to the Admissions office at admissions@methodistcollege.edu.

When drafting your written statement, please cite any sources using APA format if applicable.  Also know that instances of plagiarism within an applicant's written statement will disqualify them for acceptance to Nebraska Methodist College due to the College's commitment to academic integrity and stringent plagiarism policies.

If you send your responses through the mail, please type your responses and send them to:
NMC Admissions
Nebraska Methodist College - The Josie Harper Campus
720 N. 87th Street
Omaha, NE 68114

1. An NMC graduate is an educated citizen who exhibits breadth of learning through the liberal arts and sciences traditions in concert with professional education. Our goal as an institution is that graduates of NMC will be able to articulate and demonstrate growth in the following areas: as reflective individuals, as effective communicators, and as change agents.

   Please first address what or who has influenced your decision to pursue a career in healthcare?

2. Reflective Individual: A reflective individual consistently uses logic and critical thinking in all aspects of life. Select one of the following classes that you have taken: English Composition, Literature, History, Government, Psychology, or Sociology.

   Share what was most interesting to you in this class. How might you apply what you learned to the healthcare field? If you do not have recent classes to reflect upon, you may reflect on a personal experience that you had and how what you learned from the experience can be applied to healthcare.

3. Effective Communicator: Effective communicators express their ideas through talking, non-verbal communication, writing, and sometimes speaking languages other than English.

   Describe the type of communication listed above you feel most comfortable using. Give a specific example of a time when you exhibited strong communication skills and what the result was of this communication. For example, did you resolve a problem, put someone at ease, or help someone understand a complicated situation?

4. Change Agent: One of the goals of our undergraduate education is to assist students in becoming agents of change. We create positive change when we work effectively in groups and bring individuals together for a common purpose. These skills are challenging and require patience and practice.

   Describe an experience you have had as a member of a group. Select a particular situation when a problem arose in that group and write about how you responded to it. You may select an experience that went well or one that you wish you could "do over."

5. Please address any grades of D's or F's listed on your transcripts.  Also, please address withdrawals or other discrepancies on your transcripts. If you do not have any D's, F's or W's please respond: Not Applicable.  

In preparation for professional nursing roles nursing students are expected to demonstrate the ability to meet the demands of a professional nursing career. Certain functional abilities are essential for the delivery of safe, effective nursing care. An applicant to the Bachelors of Science in Nursing program must meet the following technical standards and maintain satisfactory demonstration of these standards for progression throughout the program. Students unable to meet these technical standards will not be able to complete the program. Students shall notify faculty of any change in their ability to meet technical standards. The technical standards include but are not necessarily limited to the following:

General Ability

The student is expected to possess functional use of the senses of vision, touch, hearing, and smell so that data received by the senses is integrated, analyzed and synthesized in a consistent and accurate manner. The student is expected to possess the ability to perceive pain, pressure, temperature, position, vibration, and movement in order to effectively evaluate patients. A student must be able to respond promptly to urgent situations.

Observational Ability

The student must have the ability to make accurate visual observations and interpret them in the context of clinical/laboratory activities and patient care experiences. The student must be able to document these observations accurately.

Communication Ability

The student must communicate effectively verbally and non-verbally to obtain information and explain that information to others. Each student must have the ability to read, write, comprehend and speak the English language to facilitate communication with patients, family members, and other members of the healthcare team. The student must be able to document and maintain accurate records, present information in a professional manner and provide patient instruction to effectively care for patients and their families.

Motor Ability

The student must be able to perform gross and fine motor movements with sufficient coordination needed to provide complete physical assessments and provide safe effective care for patients. The student is expected to have psychomotor skills necessary to perform or assist with procedures, treatments, administration of medications, and emergency interventions including CPR if necessary. The student must have sufficient levels of neuromuscular control and eye-to-hand coordination as well as possess the physical and mental stamina to meet the demands associated with extended periods of sitting, standing, moving, and physical exertion required for safe patient care. Students must be able to bend, squat, reach, kneel or balance. Clinical settings may require that students have the ability to carry and lift loads from the floor, from 12 inches from the floor, to shoulder height and overhead. The student must be able to occasionally lift 50 pounds, frequently lift 25 pounds, and constantly lift 10 pounds. The student is expected to be able to maintain consciousness and equilibrium and have the physical strength and stamina to perform satisfactorily in clinical settings.

Intellectual—Conceptual Ability

The student must have the ability to develop problem-solving skills essential to professional nursing practice. Problem solving skills include the ability to measure, calculate reason, analyze, and synthesize objective and subjective data, and to make decisions, in a timely manner that reflect thoughtful deliberation and sound clinical judgment. The student must demonstrate application of these skills and possess the ability to incorporate new information from peers, instructors, and the nursing and healthcare literature to formulate sound judgment to establish care plans and priorities in patient care activities.

Behavioral and Social Attributes

The student is expected to have the emotional stability required to exercise sound judgment, and complete assessment and intervention activities. Compassion, integrity, motivation, and concern for others are personal attributes required of those in the nursing program. The student must fully utilize intellectual capacities that facilitate prompt completion of all responsibilities in the classroom and clinical settings; the development of mature, sensitive, and effective relationships with patients and other members of the healthcare team. The ability to establish rapport and maintain interpersonal relationships with individuals, families, and groups from a variety of social, emotional, cultural and intellectual backgrounds is critical for practice as a nurse. Each student must be able to adapt to changing environments; display flexibility; accept and integrate constructive criticism given in the classroom and clinical settings; and effectively collaborate in the clinical setting with other members of the healthcare team.

Ability to Manage Stressful Situations

The student must be able to adapt to and function effectively in relation to stressful situations encountered in both the classroom and clinical settings, including emergency situations. Students will encounter multiple stressors while in the nursing program. These stressors may be (but are not limited to) personal, patient care/family, faculty/peer, and or program related.

Background Check/Drug Screening

Clinical facilities require that Nebraska Methodist College perform drug testing and background checks on all students before they are allowed to participate in clinical experiences. Therefore, students will be required to have a background check performed and submit to drug screening before being allowed into clinical practice.

Learn more about Transfer Student Admissions

• What Makes a Good Nurse? 6 Key Traits
• ADN or BSN? The Benefits Of Becoming A BSN-Prepared Nurse
• Survey Says Nurses Most Trusted Professionals
• Demand Continues to Rise for BSN Educated Nurses
• Watson's Theory of Human Caring: Foundation of Nursing Program

• American Nurses Association 
• National Student Nurses Association 
• Listing of National & International Nursing Organizations

• Spanish for Healthcare Professionals
• Healthcare Sign Language