New approach to Nursing education takes flight
There’s a new approach to nursing education launching in Toronto that will graduate future leaders and has the potential to transform how nurses work and learn.
Nipissing University, in partnership with six of Canada’s leading Academic Health Centres, will be launching the Scholar Practitioner Program (SPP) on Tuesday, September 6, 2011, at 9 a.m. at 80 Bloor Street West, 10th floor.
The program was designed by Nipissing’s School of Nursing, the University Health Network, the Hospital for Sick Children, Baycrest, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, Mount Sinai and Toronto Public Health. It was designed to reshape how and where students learn to nurse while providing a rich and diverse learning experience that maximizes resources like time, space, money and energy.
“The goal of the program is to develop the next generation of Nursing leaders — practice-ready scholar practitioners who are curious, insightful technologically competent, knowledgeable and courageous,” said Dr. Mary Ferguson-Pare, recently retired Vice-President and Chief Nurse Executive at University Health Network, who helped create the SPP. “This program will prepare mature candidates with university and life experience to meet the challenges of the health care system of the future.”
“I am very excited about this innovative program. The individuals and organizations that designed the Scholar Practitioner Program have accomplished something truly transformative for nursing education and the nursing profession itself. The graduates of this self–directed program will most certainly be leaders for patient centered care. Programs like the SPP work to benefit all Canadians by preparing professionals who have the knowledge and skills to improve the health care system,” said Dr. Debra Bournes, Provincial Chief Nursing Officer, Nursing Secretariat.
The SPP is an intensive two-year, six-semester, Bachelor of Science in Nursing second degree entry program that is open to students who already have a degree in any field of study, from English, History or Classical Studies to Biology, Psychology and Chemistry. By providing a faster path to graduation and Nursing accreditation than the typical four-year Nursing degree programs, the SPP should alleviate some of the acute shortages in Nursing care being witnessed throughout Canada. It also provides greater opportunity for students to work and learn in a variety of health care settings, receiving hands-on, practical experience and directing their own learning, with nursing academics.
Students will spend more than 200 hours per semester immersed in one of the partner health care settings. That equates to over 1,200 practical hours during the two-year program.
A three-week intensive in-class session, geared to group work and case-based study, will precede the practical component of each semester.
The program is launching with a total of 32 students enrolled with the expectation for growth in future years. The students bring a wide variety of degrees and professional backgrounds. One student holds a PhD in Political Science, another is a trained social anthropologist.
“Since Nursing education moved into the university setting, there has been much greater emphasis on theory. This program combines the best of the old – when Nursing education took place entirely in hospitals – with the best of the new, theory-based education and technological advances. We are redefining how Nursing education is delivered to improve efficiency and better meet the needs of all Canadians,” said Dr. Rick Vanderlee, who helped create the SPP and is the Dean of the Faculty of Applied and Professional Studies at Nipissing.
A short video featuring Dr. Rick Vanderlee discussing the SPP can be viewed here: www.nipissingu.ca/spp