Philosophy
Vision and Mission Vision Statement for the Faculty of Nursing The Faculty of Nursing contributes to nursing knowledge – locally, nationally and globally – through teaching, research, and participation in community service and by advancing leadership, innovation and excellence in practice. Faculty of Nursing Mission Statement The Faculty of Nursing promotes leadership in nursing education, research and practice. The Faculty achieves this mission through commitment to:
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Goals The Goals of the Faculty (UNB/Humber) are as follows:
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Context In order to prepare our students for practice in the health care environment of their time, the curriculum is responsive to the context of the social environment of health care. Of particular importance are societal trends and trends specific to health care reform. |
Philosophical Underpinnings The curriculum uniquely focuses on primary health care, social justice and caring as core values of the program. Major intellectual emphases are on concepts and theories for understanding human responses and experiences in health and illness situations. Practice situations are planned to facilitate the development of knowledge and clinical competencies. The UNB nursing curriculum framework supports a holistic and multidimensional view of nursing. The generalist preparation of the UNB baccalaureate degree prepares graduates to work with clients in achieving affordable and accessible care in a variety of settings. The Bachelor of Nursing degree fosters development of a transferable skill set, including critical thinking, which ensures a commitment to lifelong learning. ************** Societal trends have necessitated health care reform and have consequently influenced on nursing education. The growing numbers of elderly and chronically ill in our population and the trend for community-based care are noteworthy. The increase in acuity of client illnesses, shorter hospital stays, and diverse practice settings challenge nurse educators to educate nurses who both adapt well to institutional settings and are able to coordinate and provide follow-up care in the community. Along with changing needs, rising costs of health care and economic constraints have necessitated a shift in focus from expensive, curative medical approaches to practices that emphasize disease prevention and health promotion. This ultimately results in more equitable and cost-effective distribution of health care resources. As a consequence of consumerism, people no longer accept health care professionals as all knowing and all powerful and they want involvement in health care matters. An increased emphasis on health promotion to foster personal responsibility for wellness and to build healthy families and communities is a mark of health care reform that is sweeping New Brunswick and Canada. There is a continuing need for nurses to provide clinical services to individuals. This need is combined with a strengthened and more visible role for nurses in assessment, community based service, program planning, and evaluation (Nursing Resource and Management Plan, 1993). Nurses need to be active in these roles in program development and policy-making across the range of essential health care services. (Nursing Resource and Management Plan). To ensure that the nursing curriculum meets service demands, nurses in various positions and settings around the province provide input into curriculum revision. The curriculum is seen as a continually evolving process. Input from stakeholders (including employers, agencies, practicing nurses, students, and graduates) is valued and sought as part of the ongoing evaluation process. Primary health care is both a philosophy and a resource for health. This approach to nursing education is in keeping with The World Health Organization (WHO) definition for health which embraces the principles of social justice and equity and incorporates caring approaches. Nursing is an appropriate and important point of access to health services in a primary health care system. A primary health care philosophy provides nursing education and practice with strategies to provide comprehensive, integrated, accessible, affordable, scientifically sound health services. Primary health care addresses priority or essential personal, family and community needs through the full participation of clients and communities. Essential health care includes preventive, promotive, curative, supportive, and rehabilitative services. Accessibility, affordability, and acceptability are informed by cultural, financial, linguistic, geographic, and many other considerations. Intersectoral collaboration requires partnerships among clients and professionals from many sectors, beyond and including health. Social justice is a philosophical approach that recognizes that all persons deserve fair treatment, basic necessities, and freedoms or rights. Two approaches to social justice, Egalitarianism and Utilitarianism, guide allocation of resources in the Canadian health care system. Nurses who are aware of social justice and social activism develop political consciousness and advocate for more egalitarian distribution of society’s resources. Caring as a universal phenomenon is essential to human development and survival and is a moral imperative of nursing. Caring responses can be enhanced, elicited, or inhibited by education and past experiences and by the presence or absence of role models. Caring is a dynamic, informed, intentional process that requires a connection between individuals and/or groups. Caring may occur privately or within broad socio-political contexts.
Egalitarianism and Utilitarianism from Social Justice Fair treatment involves equitable distribution of benefits and burdens among members of society. Basic necessities encompass access to health care, minimum standards of income, access to affordable housing, and environmental safety. Freedoms or rights that promote health include peace, shelter, food, education, income, stable ecosystem, justice, and equity. Egalitarianism entitles all persons to equal shares of available goods and resources. Utilitarianism distributes resources to achieve the greatest good and serve the largest number of people. |