Nursing is the practice of providing care to sick people. It is a noble profession and one of the oldest in the world. They call it an art and a science. Undoubtedly, the people of this profession do it with all their hearts and minds.
Nursing has evolved through the centuries. Today, nurses play a pivotal role in keeping patient care effective and efficient. They play their part as a bridge between patients and doctors. They are directly in contact with their patients and doctors. The nursing staff is the backbone of the healthcare system, and no one can consider a health setup without nurses.
Nursing Education:
Nursing is not as simple as it looks. It is not just limited to passing Intravenous lines and giving medications to patients. It is much more than that. It is a complex duty involving judgment, observation, critical thinking, and decision-making. They record the medical histories of patients. They monitor patient health, collaborate with other teams regarding patient care, and take care of the medication schedule of their patients.
Proper education is a must to require all these skills. It is called nursing education which is a system of learning the science of nursing. Special academic programs include BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing) and MSN (Master of Science in Nursing). BSN is a primary nursing degree, an academic program that deals with undergraduate training. People who aspire to advance their careers and step up their professional qualifications in nursing go for MSN involving advanced training. BSN to MSN online programs are available and help people in the nursing profession achieve high goals as nurse educators, nurse administrators, and better nurse practitioners. In addition, e-learning opportunities can help them study and work simultaneously and with ease.
Strategies for educating nurses:
- Designing a standard curriculum:
Designing a standard nursing curriculum is the first thing to do. There is always a national-level curriculum, and people in the health and education sector make it. This curriculum should be broad and include all the aspects of the study. The teaching institution should follow the national curriculum but can make changes accordingly.
- Education through lectures:
A lecture is a great tool to convey the knowledge present in books. It involves the whole class. A teacher outlines the course and highlights the main aspects of a topic. Nowadays, teachers make presentations and project them on a projector screen. Sometimes a lecture is presented on a whiteboard. Students listen to their teacher, and in the end, they can become part of the discussion.
- Evidence-based practice (EBP):
Evidence-based practice (EBP) is critical and significant for a student who aims to be a good nurse. This technique helps nurses extract the maximum knowledge from research or practical experience. It prepares a nursing student to utilize the best evidence of knowledge and study in nursing practice. It also helps nurses provide individualized healthcare, improve time management, and adopt new techniques.
- Doing research:
Research has become the core ingredient of almost every field of education. It allows a person to search for content that has never been available in the literature. It is a booster of the knowledge of a researcher. It gives direction and purpose to the study of a student. Some of the most used research strategies include qualitative research strategy, quantitative research strategy, descriptive research strategy, analytical research study, etc.
- Experience through simulations:
It is a new educational strategy of learning. It is a training method and involves the replacement of amplification of real-life experiences with guided and controlled experiences. It gives a learner a sense of reality; makes a student ready for real-world situations. It teaches a student better handling of the actual happenings. This educational approach has become one of the best strategies in nursing education.
- Online course:
Online study is as necessary as on-campus study. A nursing student can study online through many sources. The mass of content available on the internet is colossal. The material on the internet is readily available, and a person can use it anytime and anywhere. The sources of knowledge on the internet include lectures, presentations, videos, research studies, and webinars. Online study has proved to be an efficient platform for providing all the necessary information.
- Service-based strategies:
A service-based strategy is necessary for acquiring real-life experience. Lectures, research, and online study are good strategies. Still, nothing matches the experience you can gain after passing through real-life situations. Nursing students visit the hospital, observe the working environment, meet the patients, and come in direct contact with people involved in the system. They involve themselves in different activities and apply the knowledge and concepts they gain in classrooms.
- Learning through workshops:
It is a revolutionary concept and effective teaching and learning method. It involves a room or building where people from the same educational background meet a specific goal. They perform work, hold meetings, arrange seminars, offer platforms for discussion, and sometimes hold contests in which students participate and learn through experience. It helps students to be creative and confident.
- Assignments and regular tests:
Assignments, homework, and tests are essential tools in the learning process of the education system. The assignment is the most common method of teaching in our educational setup. It involves self-learning and self-preparation and helps a nursing student become responsible and creative. The educational institution evaluates the progress of a student through tests and exams. These tests check the quality of knowledge and experience a student has gained during the learning process.
- Cooperative learning/Group discussions
It is an unconventional and innovative strategy and a fruitful educational approach. Students divide into different groups. They are involved in discussions regarding a topic and share their ideas. Sometimes a teacher gives tasks to groups to perform. It builds them as a team and creates team spirit in them. This active participation helps students to be responsible and boosts their communicational skills.
Conclusion:
Nursing is the oldest profession known to civilization. It is a very noble occupation and has evolved through the ages. No healthcare setup can work without the contributions of the nursing staff. Nursing education involves many techniques and educational strategies. A nurse must be a good leader, educator, care-taker, communicator, and guide. A nursing profession must acquire all the skills, knowledge, and experience to provide services efficiently. Different courses are available such as BSN and MSN, and students from around the world become part of it to pursue their careers as professional nurses.
Different educational strategies are applicable to educate the students of nurses. They include lectures, online study, research work, educational workshops, simulators, evidence-based practice, assignments, service-based strategies, and cooperative learning. All of these help the nursing students to become better professionals and ease the way to their successful careers.
