Conceptual+Framework

Conceptual Framework:

The MSN Core represents the foundation of both the MSN Education and MSN Leadership degree specializations. The curriculum will operate under a Scholar-Practitioner model, placing students in a position to investigate and champion important, practical problems in the field of healthcare. The program will provide students with generalizable skills and tools that allow them to effect change at both the micro and macro levels, cutting across issues such as policy and legislation, community health, vulnerable & at-risk populations, and healthcare economics. The program is comprised of four cornerstones:

An entrepreneur is someone who utilizes his or her skills to develop innovative solutions to address a problem or need. The MSN Core curriculum will emphasize entrepreneurship not only as an economic paradigm, but a social one, as well. Students in the MSN program will direct their skills and abilities towards the evaluation of real world issues in healthcare, proposing solutions that blend practice and theory to promote innovation and change both in their own practice and the profession.
 * //Entrepreneurship –//**

Healthcare practitioners are entrusted with the care of patients and should be cognizant of the most current trends in the profession, applying those that have been demonstrated as safe, effective, and reliable to ensure the welfare of those in their care and under their supervision. The curriculum will emphasize scholarly research into specific trends, issues, and topics, requiring that students apply a critical eye to their implications, benefits, and consequences.
 * //Evidence-based Practice –//**

A reflective practitioner is aware of his or her own goals and strengths, and possesses the skills necessary to adapt and grow personally and professionally. In addition, they are able to articulate their own personal vision, becoming a spokesperson for themselves and those for whom they are responsible for. The MSN Core courses will provide opportunities for students to reflect upon their own experiences, applying the understanding that emerges to their personal and professional lives. Specifically, students will develop artifacts that will address their own personal strengths and weaknesses, career paths, patterns of growth, and areas of interest.
 * //Self Reflection –//**

The world is far smaller than it was even 50 years ago, and healthcare professionals must recognize the implications of a global community. Cultural sensitivity and an awareness of international trends and issues are paramount to being an effective leader or educator in the field of healthcare. The MSN Core curriculum will be ask students to expand their understanding of and experience with diverse, at-risk, and vulnerable populations both at the treatment level and the policy level.
 * //Global Awareness –//**

These four cornerstones represent the fundamental outcomes of the MSN Core courses. The synthesis of these four cornerstones is the emergence of advocacy, which is at the heart of both specializations of the MSN degree.

As leaders in the healthcare field, graduates of the MSN program will be positioned to effect change in a wide number of possible careers. Doing so requires passion about the issues, topics, and people affected by healthcare policies and practices. Students will be mentored to focus their study and research on issues of interest or importance to them, and to become champions for those causes. Upon graduation, students will continue to serve as advocates for these issues, promoting and effecting change in their chosen careers. As the culmination of the four cornerstones of the curriculum, students will become capable of applying themselves in the following four concentrations:
 * //Advocacy –//**

· Political Advocacy – legislative action, policy-making · Social Advocacy – vulnerable populations, community health, education · Patient Advocacy – professional ethicacy, promotion of well-being · Personal Advocacy – career paths, entrepreneurial endeavors, advancement