NEWS RELEASE
For immediate release
Contact: Mary Pattock, School of Nursing, 612-624-0939
Doctoral graduates will address complex health issues
Master's program opens alternate pathway into nursing
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (September 21, 2006) - The University of Minnesota Board of Regents recently authorized the School of Nursing to offer two new graduate nursing degrees, both geared toward clinical practice: a doctor of nursing practice (D.N.P.) and a master of nursing (M.N.) degree.
The school has long offered a doctor of philosophy (Ph.D.) program, oriented to preparing researchers and nursing faculty. This new, complementary, practice doctorate will prepare nurses for leadership as advanced practice nurses, clinical experts, health care executives, policy experts and informaticians.
School of Nursing Dean Connie Delaney says the new degrees will help the University propel the practice of nursing to higher levels of excellence. "Adding these clinical programs will help us bring together state-of-the-science research, education and practice. This is an important dynamic. It will challenge our students and researchers. It will enhance our ability to develop clinical leaders and it will contribute to the school's environment as an exciting place to make discoveries that improve people's health and well being."
The new doctoral degree responds to numerous needs, including the need to provide clinical care that is increasingly complex; the need to ensure patient safety, especially in hospitals; the need for health care systems to share patient information efficiently and confidentially; the need to coordinate vast systems of equipment, information and referrals. Employers, meanwhile, are interested in nursing's systems approach, its holistic focus on coordinating patient care, and on bringing those approaches to bear at a high level in order to address complex issues.
In offering a practice doctorate, nursing is developing parallel to other health professions including pharmacy (Pharm.D), psychology (Psy.D.), physical therapy (DPT), medicine (M.D.) and dentistry (D.D.S.). Virtually all health disciplines are finding that higher levels of professional preparation are needed in today's increasingly complex health care environment, partly because of technology and other scientific innovations and partly because people now live longer and have more complex health problems.
The D.N.P. curriculum will include clinical topics like physiology and advanced pharmacology; business-related courses like leadership theory, health care delivery systems and health policy; and topics such as global health and cultural diversity. Students will be challenged to solve real-life clinical problems. The program will combine both Web-based and face-to-face instruction, so it will be accessible to distance learners at the same time it allows students to get together in person at least once a semester.
Entry-Level Master's Good for Grads, the Profession and the Public
The new master's program also responds to changes in health care, especially the nursing shortage, by offering a way for people who already have bachelor's, master's or doctoral degrees in other fields to enter nursing as a second career. (The M.N. replaces the School's post-baccalaureate program, which offered a certificate but not a degree).
A master's degree as the first professional degree is an attractive alternative to people with rich and varied education and experience who want to become nurses but do not want to obtain another undergraduate degree. Their knowledge and perspectives will serve to enrich an already holistic profession.
The M.N. program meets national standards for pre-licensure curriculum for professional nursing, so that graduates will be eligible to take the RN licensing exam. Designed to prepare nursing leaders, the curriculum includes a course on informatics and a capstone clinical project focused on leadership. Intensive and full-time, the program will require 16 months to complete. Graduates will have the foundation necessary to pursue either the D.N.P. or Ph.D. in nursing.
Consistent with National Recommendations
The approach the University is using to address both the nursing shortage and quality of care issues - that is, increasing the number of graduates of bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs as opposed to graduates of two-year associate degree programs - is consistent with recommendations from numerous national health policy groups, including the Pew Health Professions Commission, the American Academy of Nursing and the American Academy of Colleges of Nursing. The Institute of Medicine, in its report, Health Professions Education: A Bridge to Quality, recommends that "All health professionals should be educated to deliver patient-centered care as members of an interdisciplinary team, emphasizing evidence-based practice, quality improvement approaches, and informatics."
Details Available Online
When it launches in January 2007, the D.N.P. will be a "completion" program, enabling students who already hold a master's degree to quickly earn the D.N.P. Then, starting in the fall of 2008, people with a B.S.N. or higher nursing degree may apply. Information will be available in early October on the School of Nursing Web site, www.nursing.umn.edu.
The M.N. program will open in the fall of 2007; application must be made by December 15, 2006. More information on the M.N. program, including application forms, is available now on the School of Nursing Web site, www.nursing.umn.edu.
The University of Minnesota School of Nursing, ranked among the nation's top nursing schools, is a leader in improving health care through research, education and service. Its scientists, renowned nationally and around the world, discover practical health care treatments and solutions people can use today to improve their daily lives. The oldest continuing university-based school of nursing in the world, it has a combined graduate and undergraduate enrollment of about 850 students. The school produces 55 percent of the faculty in Minnesota's public and private nursing schools, advanced practice nurses and nurses prepared to assume leadership positions. The School of Nursing is one of six schools and colleges in the Academic Health Center, one of the most comprehensive facilities for health professionals in the nation, fostering interdisciplinary study, research and education.
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