The practice of nursing
Scope of nursing practice
According to the International Council of Nurses (ICN), the scope of nursing practice “encompasses autonomous and collaborative care of individuals of all ages, families, groups, and communities, sick or well and in all settings.” National nursing associations further clarify the scope of nursing practice by establishing particular practice standards and codes of ethics. National and state agencies also regulate the scope of nursing practice. Together, these bodies set forth legal parameters and guidelines for the practice of nurses as clinicians, educators, administrators, or researchers.
Education for nursing practice
Nurses enter practice as generalists. They care for individuals and families of all ages in homes, hospitals, schools, long-term-care facilities, outpatient clinics, and medical offices. Many countries require three to four years of education at the university level for generalist practice, although variations exist. For example, in the United States, nurses can enter generalist practice through a two-year program in a community college or a four-year program in a college or university.
Preparation for specialization in nursing or advanced nursing practice usually occurs at the master’s level. A college or university degree in nursing is required for entrance to most master’s programs. These programs emphasize the assessment and management of illnesses, pharmacology, health education, and supervised practice in specialty fields, such as pediatrics, mental health, women’s health, community health, or geriatrics.
Research preparation in nursing takes place at the doctoral level. Coursework emphasizes nursing knowledge and science and research methods. An original and substantive research study is required for completion of the doctoral degree.
Forms of general nursing practice
Hospital-based nursing practice
Hospital nursing is perhaps the most familiar of all forms of nursing practice. Within hospitals, however, there are many different types of practices. Some nurses care for patients with illnesses such as diabetes or heart failure, whereas others care for patients before, during, and after surgery or in pediatric, psychiatric, or childbirth units. Nurses work in technologically sophisticated critical care units, such as intensive care or cardiac care units. They work in emergency departments, operating rooms, and recovery rooms, as well as in outpatient clinics. The skilled care and comfort nurses provide patients and families are only a part of their work. They are also responsible for teaching individuals and families ways to manage illnesses or injuries during recovery at home. When necessary, they teach patients ways to cope with chronic conditions. Most hospital-based nurses are generalists. Those with advanced nursing degrees provide clinical oversight and consultation, work in management, and conduct patient-care research.
Community health nursing practice
Community health nursing incorporates varying titles to describe the work of nurses in community settings. Over the past centuries and in different parts of the world, community health nurses were called district nurses, visiting nurses, public health nurses, home-care nurses, and community health nurses. Today community health nursing and public health nursing are the most common titles used by nurses whose practices focus on promoting and protecting the health of populations. Knowledge from nursing, social, and public health sciences informs community health nursing practices. In many countries, ensuring that needed health services are provided to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged groups is central to community health nursing practice. In the United States, community health nurses work in a variety of settings, including state and local health departments, school health programs, migrant health clinics, neighbourhood health centres, senior centres, occupational health programs, nursing centres, and home care programs. Care at home is often seen as a preferred alternative for caring for the sick. Today home-care nurses provide very sophisticated, complex care in patients’ homes. Globally, home care is being examined as a solution to the needs of the growing numbers of elderly requiring care.
Mental health nursing practice
Mental health (or psychiatric) nursing practice concentrates on the care of those with emotional or stress-related concerns. Nurses practice in inpatient units of hospitals or in outpatient mental health clinics, and they work with individuals, groups, and families. Advanced-practice mental health nurses also provide psychotherapy to individuals, groups, and families in private practice, consult with community organizations to provide mental health support, and work with other nurses in both inpatient and outpatient settings to meet the emotional needs of patients and families struggling with physical illnesses or injuries.
The care of children
The care of children, often referred to as pediatric nursing, focuses on the care of infants, children, and adolescents. The care of families, the most important support in childrens’ lives, is also a critically important component of the care of children. Pediatric nurses work to ensure that the normal developmental needs of children and families are met even as they work to treat the symptoms of serious illnesses or injuries. These nurses also work to promote the health of children through immunization programs, child abuse interventions, nutritional and physical activity education, and health-screening initiatives. Both generalist and specialist pediatric nurses work in hospitals, outpatient clinics, schools, day-care centres, and almost anywhere else children are to be found.
The care of women
The care of women, especially of childbearing and childrearing women (often called maternal-child nursing), has long been a particular nursing concern. As early as the 1920s, nurses worked with national and local governments, private charities, and other concerned professionals to ensure that mothers and children received proper nutrition, social support, and medical care. Later, nurses began working with national and international agencies to guarantee rights to adequate health care, respect for human rights, protection against violence, access to quality reproductive health services, and nutritional and educational support. Generalist and specialist nurses caring for women work on obstetrical and gynecological units in hospitals and in a variety of outpatient clinics, medical offices, and policy boards. Many have particular expertise in such areas as osteoporosis, breast-feeding support, domestic violence, and mental health issues of women.
Geriatric nursing practice
Geriatric nursing is one of the fastest-growing areas of nursing practice. This growth matches demographic need. For example, projections in the United States suggest that longer life expectancies and the impact of the “baby boom” generation will result in a significant increase in the number of individuals over age 65. In 2005 individuals over 65 accounted for about 13 percent of the total population; however, they are expected to account for almost 20 percent of the total population by 2030. Moreover, those over 65 use more health care and nursing services than any other demographic group. Most schools of nursing incorporate specific content on geriatric nursing in their curricula. Increasingly, all generalist nurses are prepared to care for elderly patients in a variety of settings including hospitals, outpatient clinics, medical offices, nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities, assisted living facilities, and individuals’ own homes. Specialists concentrate on more specific aspects of elder care, including maintaining function and quality of life, delivering mental health services, providing environmental support, managing medications, reducing the risks for problems such as falling, confusion, skin breakdown, and infections, and attending to the ethical issues associated with frailty and vulnerability.