| Policy
& Position Statement > Nursing Education
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Nursing Education
In
view of the need for Nurses’ participation in the highest decision-making
bodies at the national level, it is recognised that Nursing
Education programme have a major role in the preparation of
Nurses for leadership and decision making functions. Nurses,
and the Nursing discipline as a whole, need to respond to the
changing environment of health care delivery. They have to establish
and maintain control of well-defined and cost-effective Nursing
services.
The
Trained Nurses’ Association of India believes that Nursing Education
and Training should be organized with reference to the health
care needs of the country.
1.
Basic Nursing Education
(i) Basic
Nursing Education should include both theory and practice,
and conform to the regulations and syllabi prescribed by the
Indian Nursing Council.
(ii) Career
guidance and information should be provided to persons wishing
to take up Nursing as a career. This type of information should
be made available to all eligible young persons, especially
women, at the district level.
(iii) The
TNAI supports two levels of Basic Nursing Education and Training:
a)
B.Sc. Nursing degree for preparation of professional Nurses
to provide General Nursing and Midwifery services in the community,
hospitals, and through other health care agencies.
b)
Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) programme for Preparation
of Nursing Auxiliaries/ Health Workers for the institutions
and the Community Health care system respectively.
(iv) General
Nursing and Midwifery Diploma / Certificate Programme (GNM)
should be phased out in a planned manner in a specified time
frame.
Schools
of Nursing conducting GNM programmes, especially those Schools
which are attached to Medical College Hospitals, should be upgraded
to Colleges of Nursing.
The
existing infrastructure in Schools of Nursing which are not
upgraded to colleges of Nursing should be fully utilised and
converted, with adequate financial support, to become:
a. Auxiliary
Nurse Midwife or ‘Multipurpose Health Worker (Female)’ Training
Centres.
b. Health
Supervisors’ Training Centres.
c. Inservice
Education Departments.
All
Colleges of Nursing, Schools of Nursing and ANM Training Centres
should have an independent administrative status. Keeping in
view the INC norms only a Nurse should be the administrative
head of the educational institution.
2.
Post-Basic Nursing Education
Post-Basic
Nursing Education refers to education attained after Basic Nursing
education (Basic B.Sc. Nsg./General Nursing and Midwifery Diploma
/Certificate).
The
TNAI supports the development of:
(i) (a)
Post-Basic B.Sc. Nursing Degree programme. (b) Speciality
programmes in Nursing leading to certificate, diploma, or
degree in following areas such as: Nursing Service Administration,
Nursing Education and Research, Service Administration, Nursing
Education and Research, Clinical Nursing Speciality Community
Nursing Speciality, etc.
(ii) Post-Basic
programmes should be recognized as higher education programmes
by the Indian Nursing Council and should be designed to prepare
Nursing personnel for shouldering the responsibility at various
higher levels/ positions.
(iii) Doctoral
studies in Nursing should be started in selected universities,
which have Departments of Nursing/allied areas.
3.
Continuing Education
The
TNAI has a responsibility to strengthen continuing education
programmes being vital to Nurses in the maintenance of professional
competence throughout their careers.
The
TNAI interprets Continuing Nursing Education as consisting of
planned learning experiences undertaken following a Basic Nursing
Education programme. The body of knowledge that forms the basis
of the values, principles, theories and practice of Nursing
changes constantly. No initial programme of study can provide
all the knowledge and skills needed to practise in all areas
of Nursing. It also supports a decentralised approach to enable
all categories of Nursing personnel to update their knowledge
and skills, and attitudes: hence, the highest priority should
be given to supporting development of Inservice Nursing Education
and training at the hospital and district levels.
The
State and District branches and Zonal units of the TNAI should
organise continuing education programmes on a self-financing
basis in conformity with the policies of the Continuing Education
Committee of the Association.
© 2002, Trained Nurses' Association of India (TNAI), All
Rights Reserved.