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Graduate School–Newark
Master of Science
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  Graduate School-Camden 2004-2006 Graduate School–Newark Master of Science Organization Framework  

Organization Framework

The master`s curriculum is designed to prepare clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners who are able to function in continuously changing environments or systems in which health care is delivered. The curriculum reflects the philosophy espoused by the faculty regarding the metaparadigm concepts of nursing. The organization of the curriculum consists of two components: core nursing cognate courses and the clinical specialty in nursing.

The first component of the curriculum consists of core courses in nursing, the content of which systematically builds upon knowledge and skills gained at the baccalaureate level. Ethics and advanced theories and research relative to the health of individuals, families, groups, and communities, and theories and research pertaining to management, education, role, and health care policy are discussed. The essential processes involved in concept analysis and theory development, especially using nursing conceptual models, are addressed. The emphasis in research is on the identification of a research problem, advanced methods and designs used for hypothesis testing, and the organization and management of qualitative and quantitative data.

The second component of the curriculum concentrates on the preparation of clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners in the areas of adult and aged in primary care, adult and aged in acute care, advanced practice in pediatrics, advanced practice in women`s health, community health nursing, family nurse practitioner, and psychiatric/mental health nursing. The theory and practicum courses across all specialties focus on levels of health, specifically health promotion, acute health problems, and chronic health problems. Patterns identified in human environment interaction at all levels of health provide the substantive basis relative to theories, research, and practice addressed in the specialty courses.

Broadly conceived, patterns are attributes, characteristics, properties, and behaviors of individuals, families, groups, or communities having recurring manifestations that are directly or indirectly observable. As entities, patterns are relatively stable, fairly predictable, and can be related to one another in meaningful ways. Patterns can be identified in the literature as concepts that meet the aforementioned criteria and that represent the metaparadigm concepts of nursing. Of particular interest to nursing are indices of health and illness that are associated with or result from patterns.

Advanced specialized knowledge in each clinical nursing area is derived from the scientific literature, and emphasis is placed on examining and critiquing theories and research from the literature in nursing, focusing on patterns. Advanced specialized practice characterizes the role of the nurse practitioner who uses knowledge gained from the two components of the curriculum in the care of select populations in a variety of settings. The roles of the clinical nurse specialist and nurse practitioner are multifaceted and include that of expert practitioner, educator, researcher, and administrator. The master`s curriculum in nursing prepares clinical nurse specialists and nurse practitioners who are leaders in their field and who possess knowledge foundational to doctoral education in nursing.


 
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