Masters Level Education for Nurses - Essay Example

Studies show that errors may very well not have anything to do with the competence of staff but with the complexity of the systems that have evolved. This paper will discuss this healthcare system and how the Masters prepared nurse fits into it as well as that of the Masters prepared nurse with a specialty in Education. Strong partnerships are needed to advance the profession of nursing and to address the myriad of challenges that will be faced in the near future. These partnerships have the promise of making the kinds of changes that could be lasting and advance the nursing profession in such a way as to put nursing at the forefront of addressing the present dysfunctions in the system.

After all who better to address those dysfunctions than nursing who is the caring advocate of the patient and system.(Lukosium, DiCenso, Brown 2004). There is not single definition but this writer would expect to be a part of extending the traditional scope of nursing in a highly autonomous practice, which maximizes the use of nursing knowledge and contributes to the development of the profession. Those things ca occur through the professional activities that include evaluating nursing interventions, enhancing the nursing role in the new models of care delivery, research education, and facilitating change in healthcare policies and practices.

There is an expectation to be able to use innovation in this advancement which cannot occur without the education that a Masters degree provides. The Masters further provides this writer with the ability to achieve an integration of that knowledge in such a way as to include clinical practice, education, research, professional development, and organizational leadership. Masters Nurses are definitely leaders in their profession. "Today's assignment: Find more nurse educators." (Tressman, 2009).

The battle cry for staff nurses has only quieted for a short time, quieted by the economy at this time. Soon it will begin again. It is far from over. How do we fill those nursing position when we do not have educators. The average age of a doctorally prepared full professor is 59 years old, 56 for associate professors and 52 for assistant professors (Tressman, 2009). Most nurse faculty retire at 63 therefore the pool of professors will be very much decreased very shortly. More than 50,000 qualified ap0plicants were turned away from baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs in 2008 in a large part because of insufficient numbers of nurse faculty.

Most of the major Colleges of Nursing have faculty positions that they are searching at this time. There are many other drawbacks including pay and benefits. However, nursing program deans firmly believe that the benefits of being a nurse educator far outweigh the drawbacks. Two of the reasons that most faculty give for the importance of their job are that they are involved in influencing the next generation of nurses and the they have the ability to create new knowledge through research that benefits nurses and patients.

These are the very reasons why this writer would want a specialty in Education. If one has a passion for nursing, one has a passion