All Ireland Society for Higher Education
| Name: | Coyne , Dr Imelda |
|---|---|
| Email: | Imelda.Coyne@dcu.ie |
| Institution: | (blank) |
This paper will present reflections on the balancing act that is required when higher education values are juxtaposed with a course that leads to a professional registration as a nurse. In the past, nurse education (known as nurse training) was delivered by schools of nursing across Ireland. As the term suggests, the education of nurses involved a significant service delivery component, in that students spent large periods of time on clinical placement. Since September 2002, nurse education has undergone enormous change with the move to degree level education based in higher education institutes. The values endorsed by the University are collaboration and networking; accessibility and openness; development and support; innovation and flexibility; intellectual integrity, objectivity and academic freedom. Students are encouraged to discover, analyse, expand and disseminate knowledge, by developing creative and critical thinking and fostering skills and learning. Students are viewed as adult learners, in that they are encouraged to become independent self-directed learners. Nurses are expected to be competent caring practitioners and some of the values embodied in nursing include reliability, dependability, punctuality, and adherence to rules and regulations of health service organisations. Some of the historical values in nursing are still evident today such as obedience, caring, dedicated, quiet, respectful demeanour, non-questioning approach to care, and hierarchical decision-making etc. Reconciling these values, rather than endorsing all values in an undergraduate nursing degree is the focus of this paper. It will conclude with some suggestions for the future.
(Abstract ref: #9.)