Accelerating design and transforming baccalaureate nursing education to foster a culture of health

Abstract

Healthcare reform and changing population health demographics call for a radical transformation in healthcare delivery and the education of healthcare providers.  Nurses comprise the largest proportion of healthcare providers making it necessary to ensure that they are prepared to address the challenges that arise from the evolving healthcare delivery system.  A key message of the Institute of Medicine’s The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health, is that nurses must lead healthcare change.  To accomplish this, nurses must recognize their role in educating the new nursing workforce about creating a culture of health.  Specifically, nurse educators must act as stewards for promoting health and wellness, and reducing health disparities and inequities.  They must also recognize their role in forming partnerships with community organizations to improve primary care and population health by addressing social determinants of health.  The purpose of this paper is to describe the structure for developing an innovative baccalaureate nursing curriculum and lessons learned that can inform the efforts of others interested in accelerating design of new curriculum.