A number of
societal, scientific, and professional developments have stimulated a
major paradigm change in graduate education in nursing. The rapid
expansion of knowledge underlying practice; increased complexity of
patient care; national concerns about the quality of care and patient
safety; shortages of nursing personnel; demands for a higher level of
preparation for nurses to design and evaluate best practices; shortages
of nursing faculty; and the increasing educational expectations for the
preparation of other health professionals have led the American
Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) to establish the standard that
by 2015 all advanced practice nursing specialty preparation should be
at the doctoral level.
The School of Nursing and Health Professions at the University of San Francisco has
designed a vital, responsive Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.)
program for the baccalaureate-prepared nurse and the nurse with a
master's degree. The program of study for students with a bachelor's
degree is 96 credits. The D.N.P. Completion Program for nurses who have already completed a Masters Degree takes into
account previous academic coursework and clinical experiences and the
required number of credits are adjusted accordingly. Course schedules are
designed for both full- and part-time students and are responsive to the
needs of the working nurse professional. Graduates of the program will
meet the AACN outcome competencies and practice standards, including the
completion of 1000 hours of supervised clinical practice, the
successful passing of a comprehensive exam, and the completion of a
D.N.P. evidence-based practice project.
The D.N.P. program at the University of San Francisco will
prepare graduates for advanced nursing practice in "direct" (nurse
practitioner) and "indirect" (healthcare systems leadership) roles. The
program is designed to conform to the American Association of Colleges
of Nursing standard that by 2015 all advanced practice nursing specialty
preparation should be at the D.N.P. level
(http://www.aacn.nche.edu/DNP/DNPPositionStatement.htm).
Upon completion of the D.N.P. program, the graduate will be
able to:
- Integrate nursing science with knowledge from ethics,
the biophysical, psychosocial, analytical, and organizational sciences
to develop and evaluate nursing practice and care delivery models
- Develop and evaluate effective strategies for
managing the ethical dilemmas inherent in patient care, the health care
organization, information technology, and research
- Use analytic methods to design, implement, and
evaluate best practice models for patient care and systems of care
delivery
- Effectively develop, implement, and evaluate
evidence-based approaches to advance nursing and health care
- Demonstrate leadership in the development and
implementation of institutional, local, state, federal, and
international health policy
- Advocate for social justice, equity, and ethical
policies within all healthcare arenas
- Effectively lead quality improvement and patient
safety initiatives
- Advance the effective use of health care information
systems to assure high quality health care outcomes
- Employ effective communication and collaborative
skills in the development and implementation of practice models, health
policy, standards of care, and organizational issues
- Analyze and synthesize epidemiological,
biostatistical, environmental, and cultural elements related to
individual, aggregate, and population health
- Conduct a comprehensive assessment of health and
illness parameters in complex situations, incorporating diverse and
culturally sensitive approaches in order to design, implement, and
evaluate evidence-based interventions
- Develop and sustain therapeutic relationships and
partnerships with patients and other professionals to facilitate optimal
patient outcomes
- Analyze the links among practice, organizational,
population, fiscal, and policy issues in order to effectively educate
individuals and colleagues
- Satisfy the course and clinical requirements for
specialty certification
- Advance the mission and core values of the University
of San Francisco
The B.S.N. to D.N.P. program is designed for registered nurses who hold baccalaureate degrees in nursing, with preparation as
- Family Nurse Practitioner
-
Healthcare Systems Leader
- Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Fall 2013)
The D.N.P. Completion program is designed for registered nurses who hold masters degrees with preparation a
- Family Nurse Practitioner
-
Healthcare Systems Leader
- Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Fall 2013)
The Executive Leadership D.N.P. program is designed for registered nurse currently working.
