Mission, Vision and Philosophy
Purpose and Mission of the School of Nursing
The purpose of the South College School of Nursing is to provide practical and professional nurses with academic and clinical practice opportunities to gain the knowledge and skills that are essential to meet the demands of today’s healthcare environment. The School of Nursing at South College offers graduate, professional, and career-focused curricula designed to cultivate students’ successful learning and the ability to apply knowledge, think critically, and communicate effectively.
In support of the South College mission statement, the mission of the School of Nursing is to provide a high-quality undergraduate and graduate nursing education that challenges students through curricular and collaborative interaction. Because academic programs at South College are professional and career-focused, the School of Nursing responds to local, regional, and national employment needs and supports current workforce trends.
Vision of the School of Nursing
The South College School of Nursing aspires to become a nursing school of distinction through an integrated and student-focused curriculum. The School is committed to providing an education that values excellence in ethical patient care and professional growth and integrity.
Philosophy of the School of Nursing
The wellness-illness continuum of care provides the overall organizing framework that serves as the philosophical structure for the nursing curriculum at the South College School of Nursing, with students introduced to a variety of nursing theoretical frameworks. Related concepts emphasized in the nursing curriculum include ethical decision-making, critical thinking, effective communication, leadership, and management.
- Person: A person is a unique, holistic, adaptive, open system. Persons, either alone or in groups, families, or communities, have inherent basic rights and choices. Each person is multi-dimensional with variables such as age, gender, culture, race, religion, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle choices.
- Environment: Environment is a complex, open system functioning in a dynamic state of change. The environment is both internal and external, uniquely perceived by each person, either alone or in groups, families, or communities.
- Health: Health is a dynamic phenomenon encompassing physical, emotional and spiritual parameters. Health is individually perceived and influenced by internal and external factors.
- Nursing: Professional nursing is an art and a science with caring as the core concept. The role of the nurse is to facilitate optimal independent functioning of persons, alone or in groups, through the promotion, maintenance, and restoration of health. The professional nurse will utilize critical thinking and the nursing process to plan and implement care.
- Professional Nursing Education: Nursing education is an interactive process. The faculty of the South College School of Nursing embraces the concepts of professional nursing education as described in the Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008) and the Essentials of Master’s Education in Nursing (AACN, 2011).
MSN Mission
The Master of Science in Nursing at South College is designed to prepare nurse leaders and clinicians for the unique challenges of the 21st century. Based on the Essentials of Master’s Education in Nursing (AACN, 2011) and the specialty foci governing documents, the MSN program is designed to prepare master’s level nursing leaders and clinicians who are able to critically analyze and identify healthcare problems and provide evidence-based solutions. This includes being able to communicate information to influence an organization, integrate decision making across all nursing functions, and develop effective strategies while understanding the importance of ethical decision making.
MSN Purpose
The purpose of the South College School of Nursing Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program is to provide professional nurses with academic and clinical practice opportunities to gain the knowledge and skills at the master’s level that are essentials to meet the demands of today’s healthcare environment. The School of Nursing at South College offers professional and career-focused curricula designed to cultivate students’ successful learning and the ability to apply knowledge, think critically, and communicate effectively.