UCC SONM 25 Year Book

UCC / School of Nursing and Midwifery

Academic Programmes Societal change historically has presented many challenges for nursing. The challenge to nurse and midwifery educators is to ensure that professional education remains relevant and keeps abreast of both societal and healthcare changes. These challenges include globalisation, changing patient characteristics, science and information technology advancements, the increasing complexities of healthcare, economic constraints and evolving health and social care policy. A clear understanding of these factors is essential if nursing is to meet the challenges presented by tomorrow’s healthcare environment in a global context. Arguably a key challenge to nurses of the future will be to remain focused on the caring aspects of the role, ensuring the public’s trust and confidence in the nurse’s capacity to deliver safe and effective evidence-based patient care. The education of nurses has undergone rapid and progressive change moving from an apprenticeship model to a diploma, with many states having moved to a baccalaureate entry to practice over the last twenty years. Advancements in postgraduate education have sought to ensure nurses and midwives attain transferable knowledge and skills relating to communication, evidence-based practice, quality improvement, team-working, management, leadership, informatics, critical thinking, problem solving, and ethical compassionate care. Additionally, students must gain specialist disciplinary knowledge to meet the needs of patients in diverse and specialist areas of practice. The School of Nursing and Midwifery has been to the forefront of such developments with 19 academic programmes now being offered by the School including a Bachelors in Nursing Degree, clinically focused Higher Diplomas, Masters (taught and research mode), Doctorate in Nursing and PhD. Whilst UCC has overall responsibility for the provision of nursing andmidwifery undergraduate and post graduate education, the School offers such programmes through close collaborative and partnership arrangements with a range of Health Service Provider partners.

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