The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (2008)

Essential I: Liberal Education for Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice

  • A solid base in liberal education provides the cornerstone for the practice and education of nurses.

Essential II: Basic Organizational and Systems Leadership for Quality Care and Patient Safety

  • Knowledge and skills in leadership, quality improvement, and patient safety are necessary to provide high quality health care.

Essential III: Scholarship for Evidence Based Practice

  • Professional nursing practice is grounded in the translation of current evidence into one’s practice.

Essential IV: Information Management and Application of Patient Care Technology

  • Knowledge and skills in information management and patient care technology are critical in the delivery of quality patient care.

Essential V: Health Care Policy, Finance, and Regulatory Environments

  • Healthcare policies, including financial and regulatory, directly and indirectly influence the nature and functioning of the healthcare system and thereby are important considerations in professional nursing practice.

Essential VI: Interprofessional Communication and Collaboration for Improving Patient Health Outcomes

  • Communication and collaboration among healthcare professionals are critical to delivering high quality and safe patient care.

Essential VII: Clinical Prevention and Population Health

  • Health promotion and disease prevention at the individual and population level are necessary to improve population health and are important components of baccalaureate generalist nursing practice.

Essential VIII: Professionalism and Professional Values

  • Professionalism and the inherent values of altruism, autonomy, human dignity, integrity, and social justice are fundamental to the discipline of nursing.

Essential IX: Baccalaureate Generalist Nursing Practice

  • The baccalaureate-graduate nurse is prepared to practice with patients, including individuals, families, groups, communities, and populations across the lifespan and across the continuum of healthcare environment.
  • The baccalaureate graduate understands and respects the variations of care, increased complexity, and the increased use of healthcare resources inherent in caring for patients.