Simulation with synergy and community energy.

Neonatal nurse practitioners (NNPs) have a crucial role in the management and care of critically ill newborns and infants in the neonatal intensive care unit. Their role responsibilities range from daily management of care, oversight of unit and bedside education, execution of advanced procedures, and attendance at high-risk deliveries. During their educational program, there is a mix of didactic and clinical training. To ensure that their graduates are able to competently care for neonatal patients in the ever-advancing neonatal world, the NNP program at the University of Texas Medical Branch-Galveston (UTMB), has implemented simulation-based training into every clinical course. This article describes the history of simulation in the NNP program at UTMB, discusses the current use of simulation at UTMB, explores the synergistic use of undergraduate students in simulations at UTMB, and details the use of professional volunteers from the local medical community to execute the simulations and debriefing process.

Celebrating 30 years of nursing at the University of Southampton.

This paper describes the evolution of undergraduate nurse education within the University of Southampton. It highlights the continuing responsiveness of the university to the rapidly changing policy initiatives and landscape of healthcare delivery with subsequent workforce needs.

Charting the history of midwifery education.

Despite the recent popularity of exploring the history of midwifery practice, there has been minimal attention paid to the history of midwifery education. The purpose of this paper is to display a visual map and timeline of midwifery education from the eighteenth century, when formal midwifery programmes were introduced, to the present day. The paper will be inclusive of the history of midwifery teaching through the use of the High Coombe College archives (Lorentzon et al 2008). Prior to the eighteenth century, processes for learning midwifery were informal and unregulated. Traditional apprenticeships were gradually replaced by formal, regulated educational midwifery programmes, which were assessed. Midwifery teacher training finally became established in the twentieth century.

"Nurses' training may be shifted": the story of Bellevue and Hunter College, 1942-1969.

During the mid-20th century, nursing leaders advocated moving nursing education out of hospital-based programs and into colleges and universities for the purpose of preparing nurses to meet the demands of increasingly complex health care situations. Nursing leaders in New York City's municipal hospitals recognized the value of this change and sought to increase the number of baccalaureate-prepared nurses to fill the many vacancies within city hospitals. This article examines the political support New York gave to the expansion of Hunter College's baccalaureate program in nursing (a college within the City University of New York system) while closing the almost 100-year-old Bellevue and Mills Schools of Nursing diploma program. The efforts to change nursing at Bellevue started in the 1940s, but the transfer to Hunter College was not realized until 1967. Although the decision to close the diploma school met resistance among various stakeholders, the expansion ultimately succeeded. It was supported by the New York City Department of Hospitals and received approval from the Board of Estimates and Board of Higher Education. Both Bellevue and Hunter's leadership was ready to make this change and participated in this transformation.

Intellectual disability nursing in Ireland: identifying its development and future.

As a profession, intellectual disability nursing has often come under scrutiny and been called into question. Since its inception as an individual nursing profession in 1959 in Ireland, both education and service provision philosophies have changed over time. These changes have been in response to national and international reports and changing attitudes. The changes have led to the current position where intellectual disability nurse education in Ireland is a four-year undergraduate course. As the discipline of intellectual disability nursing is unique to Ireland and the United Kingdom, there is a responsibility on intellectual disability nurses to identify their unique identity and their responses to the demands of changing services. This article traces the development of intellectual disability nursing in Ireland and identifies implications for the future.

Networks of identity: the potential of biographical studies for teaching nursing identity.

This article reviews the historiographical elements of the professional identity of nursing, focusing on what historians have denoted as the "history of the present." Professional identity interacts with elements of power, gender, politics, philosophy, and history, and its value is tied to the importance it assumes at any given time in any given society. The collective identity of the profession is elucidated by the construction of nursing history, linked to the history of women and gender relationships in professional care and educational, organizational, and class practice, and also by the biographies of individuals who have shaped this identity through their reputations and life stories. In this light, it is argued that biographies could help illuminate the elements of identity formation of interest to nursing scholars and further the development of the profession; they could also bring discussions of the past and present into the teaching-learning process for nursing students. The authority and significance of these identities will also be discussed.

An educated spirit.

Richard Olding Beard, founder of the University of Minnesota School of Nursing, was a passionate and eloquent champion of educating rather than simply training nurses and of the contributions professional nurses make to social justice by improving the health care of society. The issues he wrote and spoke about are the same issues raised in contemporary discussions of entry-level preparation for nursing.

Teaching nursing history: the Santa Catarina, Brazil, experience.

Nursing history has been a much debated subject with a wide range of work from many countries discussing the profession's identity and questioning the nature of nursing and professional practice. Building upon a review of the recent developments in nursing history worldwide and on primary research that examined the structure of mandated nursing history courses in 14 nursing schools in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, this paper analyzes both the content and the pedagogical style applied. We postulate that the study of history offers an important opportunity for the development of student learning, and propose that more creative and dynamic teaching strategies be applied. We argue the need for professors to be active historical researchers, so they may meaningfully contribute to the development of local histories and enrich the professional identities of both nursing students and the profession. We conclude that historical education in nursing is limited by a traditional and universalist approach to nursing history, by the lack of relevant local sources or examples, and by the failure of historical education to be used as a vehicle to provide students with the intellectual tools for the development of professional understanding and self-identity.

Appreciating history: the Australian experience of direct-entry mental health nursing education in universities.

More than two decades since the introduction of comprehensive nursing education in Australia, the controversy regarding the type of undergraduate education that would best serve the needs of the mental health nursing profession continues. The ensuing debate tends to be based on a comparison between the current model of comprehensive education in the universities and the specialist mental health nursing programs that previously operated within the hospital system. The previous existence of a tertiary-based direct-entry mental health nursing program in Victoria is generally not recognized. The paper provides a brief overview of mental health nursing education from a historical perspective emphasizing the period following the commencement of the transfer of the nursing education. Articulating the Victorian experience of specialist undergraduate mental health nursing education within universities is essential as discussions about the most appropriate educational preparation for mental health nursing continues.

Evolution of Canadian nursing curricula: a critical retrospective analysis of power and caring.

The evolution of Canadian nursing curricula has mutually influenced and reflected nursing's historical course: nursing practice and education are inextricably linked. This paper is a critical retrospective analysis of the evolution of nursing curricula in Canada from the 20th century to the present. Falk Rafael's (1996) dialectic exploration of power and caring in nursing guides the analysis. An ordered, assimilated, and empowered curriculum development framework results. Foucault's (1980) work in the sociology of knowledge and Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, and Tarule's (1986) epistemological conceptualization of women's knowledge development are incorporated. The intricacies of the relationship between nursing curriculum development and Canadian history, the navigation of societal paradoxes that mutually drive and inform education and practice, and the instrumental need for nursing education research are considered. A fourth and new dialectic layer is suggested that places nursing on the inter-professional team of architects of a co-constructed emancipatory curriculum.

Children's nursing and future directions: learning from 'memorable events'.

At present, the UK provides pre-registration education in four distinct branches, including child, but this is under threat with calls for a single generalist register in line with most of the developed world. Debate about this may be understood by placing 'memorable events' associated with this in their historical context. Analysis of quantitative data, obtained from the Nursing and Midwifery Council identifies a clear correlation between the numbers of registered children's nurses and changes in child health and welfare policies as well as nurse education over the last century. This interpretation of 'memorable events,' showing the growth and influence of this branch of the profession, should enable present day reformers of nurse education to make a rational and informed decision as they debate and decide upon the future of children's (and young people's) nursing in the UK.

An unending challenge: how official decisions have influenced the teaching of nursing in Norway.

BACKGROUND: Over a period of more than 50 years, there have been huge changes in nursing education in Norway owing to large numbers of political and other official resolutions. AIM: To evaluate how these decisions have had influence upon the role of the nurse teacher. METHODS: The contents of political documents, government-sponsored curricula and articles in The Norwegian Nurse Organization's journal Sykepleien were analysed. FINDINGS: The main findings are structured into two periods. During the period from 1950 to 1979, nurse education was strongly bound by official detailed terms for the curriculum, and the role of the teacher was ruled by these regulations. In the next period, from 1980 to the present, the situation in nursing education changed. From now on, the teachers had to develop the curricula based on more general plans and regulations. During these years, the numbers of students increased dramatically, and there also was tremendous pressure on nurse teachers to undertake further qualifications and to do scientific work. At the same time, the teachers had to fulfil their duties in teaching and supervising the students, and support their supervisors in clinical practice. CONCLUSION: The role of the nurse teachers in Norway has, in many ways, been driven by many different interests and they are still struggling to meet the different demands made upon them.

How the war's end led to a new world for nursing.

Nursing was pivotal to the success of the new NHS. Training and practice were invigorated and working conditions improved.