Educating Nursing Students for Practice in the 21st Century

Nurses face a number of challenges in the 21st century. One major challenge pertains to nursing education, specifically to the entry into practice preparation of undergraduate nursing students. Not only do nurses need to be adequately prepared to care for an ever increasing complex patient population, but they are called upon to be leaders in healthcare. The ways in which nurses were educated during the 20th century are no longer adequate for dealing with the realities of health care today; and having a baccalaureate degree alone does not always prepare new graduate nurses for the complexities of today’s health care environment and regulatory oversight. Academia and service alike, play a vital role in the future of nursing in the U.S. and globally. Together they are responsible to provide aspiring nurses with the tools necessary to not only meet today’s, but tomorrow’s complexities of health care and to demand the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are consistent with professional practice. Academia and service areas must work together to improve the educational preparation of nursing students today.