MASTER OF SCIENCE IN NURSING

OVERVIEW

   The Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) program is built upon knowledge and competencies obtained in an undergraduate nursing program. The MSN program provides opportunities for BSN-prepared registered nurses to prepare for advanced practice roles as nurse practitioners, nurse educators, nurse managers  , or for roles in holistic nursing. Upon completion of the nurse practitioner concentration, the graduate will be eligible to take the certification examination for the Adult Nurse Practitioner, Gerontologic Nurse Practitioner, or the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner. Upon completion of the Holistic Nursing concentration, the graduate will be eligible to take the American Holistic Nurses Association certification examination in holistic nursing.

   All MSN degree-seeking students will complete 12 credits of course work which provides the foundation of graduate study in nursing. Nursing and other selected theories are studied in context of their relationship to nursing research and practice. Research methods, including concept analysis and measurement, are applied to nursing phenomena. Resource control, organizational dynamics, ethical practice and leadership in the context of health care reform are considered.

   The advanced practice nursing core (9 credits), required for the nurse practitioner concentration consists of Advanced Pathophysiology (NUR 5101), Pharmacotherapeutics (NUR 5110), and Advanced Health Assessment (NUR 5121). Additionally, neonatal nurse practitioner students complete Family Health Interventions (NUR 5446). Each nurse practitioner concentration consists of two didactic courses (a total of 5 credits) with accompanying clinical practica (a total of 11 credits). The practica consist of 704 contact hours, for a program total of 768 contact hours of clinical practica. The total number of credit hours for the Adult and Gerontologic Nurse Practitioner concentrations is 40 to 43 credit hours, and for the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner concentration is 39 to 42 credit hours.

The Educator concentration is comprised of a total of 34 to 37 credit hours of course work, including 19 credits within the area of concentration.

The Holistic Nursing concentration is comprised of a total of 36 to 39 credit hours of course work, including 12 credit hours within the area of concentration. Individualized clinical practica in settings of the student's choice are featured.

PROGRAM GOALS:

To prepare graduates:

1. For utilization of new knowledge to provide high quality, cost-effective health care.
2. To assume leadership roles in managing human, fiscal and physical health care resources.
3. To collaborate in the design and implementation of care in a variety of settings.
4. To analyze the influences of personal and professional values on health care practice and the health care delivery system.
5. To assume complex professional roles in a variety of settings by integrating prior learning with advanced discipline-specific course work.
6. For advanced education, and to be committed to professional values, lifelong learning, scholarship, and community service.

RN TO MSN ALTERNATIVE ENTRY OPTION

This option is offered to registered nurses to prepare for enrollment in the graduate program in an intensive, accelerated format.

Students applying for admission to this option must meet all graduate program admission requirements plus provide official scores for either the GRE or MAT (as further evidence of ability to successfully complete graduate studies). Applicants holding prior undergraduate or graduate degrees are exempt from this requirement. A maximum of 36 credit hours of course work from an NLNAC-accredited diploma or associate degree program will be awarded for prior knowledge. Certain posting fees will be assessed for transfer of nursing credit. Thirty credits from general education courses will complete the 66 credit hours accepted for transfer.

The following courses from the BSN program must be completed before enrollment in the Master's level course work can begin:

A grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) must be maintained during all undergraduate and graduate course work. Graduate status will be awarded upon successful completion of the 39 credits of undergraduate courses listed above. A total of 105 undergraduate credit hours comprised of 39 credits of BSN nursing courses and 66 credits of basic nursing and general education courses are required before beginning graduate level course work.

NOTE: Students who do not complete the required sequence for the entire RN to MSN option may, prior to the point of entry into graduate level course work, elect to complete an additional 16 credit hours for the BSN degree and exit the program.

MSN CURRICULUM PLANS

Nurse Educator Concentration (34-37 credits)

Holistic Nursing Concentration (36 credits)

Adult Nurse Practitioner Concentration (40 credits)

Gerontologic Nurse Practitioner Concentration (40 credits)

Neonatal Nurse Practitioner Concentration (39 credits)

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS

In addition to the Undergraduate Admissions Criteria, the following criteria are considered when reviewing an application to the RN to MSN program:

1. Graduation from a nursing program accredited by NLNAC.
2. Minimum undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale) for all nursing courses.
3. Current Missouri licensure as a registered nurse or license-eligible.*

*The admission status of license-eligible applicants is considered conditional pending proof of licensure.

MSN NURSING COURSE DESCRIPTIONS

For the Graduate program, one unit of credit is assigned for 16 hours of instruction. For clinical practica courses, one unit of credit is equal to 64 contact hours.

NUR 5101 - Advanced Pathophysiology
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisites: Undergraduate Pathophysiology or graduate Physiology
Course Description: Provides the basis for understanding the pathophysiology of underlying diseases and the changes in normal function that result in symptoms indicative of illness. Emphasis is placed on correlating symptoms and other health data with pathophysiological processes to formulate diagnostic hypotheses. Cross-listed with Washington University, Occupational Therapy Department, M11-572 and HS 5101.

NUR 5102 - Neonatal Development and Pathophysiology
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisite: Undergraduate Pathophysiology
Course Description: Provides the basis for understanding normal and abnormal fetal and neonatal development. Addresses the factors that impact development and resulting disorders and their clinical manifestations. Emphasis is placed on correlating symptoms and other health data with pathophysiological processes.

NUR 5110 - Pharmacotherapeutics
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Course Description: Emphasis is placed on the knowledge and skills to assess, diagnose, and manage common health problems with drug therapy in a safe, high quality, cost-effective manner. The integration of pharmacology, pathophysiology, symptomatology, and client needs in prescriptive practice is addressed. The selection of drug therapy, use of monitoring parameters, the provision of client education, and the adherence to legal principles are stressed. Cross-listed with Washington University, Occupational Therapy Department, M11-570.

NUR 5112 - Neonatal Pharmacotherapeutics
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Course Description: Emphasis is placed on knowledge and skills to assess, diagnose and manage neonatal health problems with drug therapy in a safe, high quality, cost-effective manner.

NUR 5121 - Advanced Health Assessment
3 credit hours (2 didactic/1 practicum)
Prerequisite: Undergraduate Health Assessment, Advanced Pathophysiology, and Pharmacotherapeutics
Provides the basis for integrating history taking, physical examination, and laboratory evaluation to determine health status and establish priorities of care. The differences between a complete health history and a history for an episodic event are examined. Cross-listed with Washington University Occupational Therapy Department, M11-571.

NUR 5122 - Advanced Fetal and Neonatal Health Assessment
4 credit hours (2.5 didactic/1.5 practicum)(64 contact hours of lab/practicum)
Prerequisite: Undergraduate Health Assessment, Advanced Fetal and Neonatal Pathophysiology, and Neonatal Pharmacotherapeutics
Assessment of the critically ill neonate throughout a continuum from conception through infancy is emphasized. Includes family assessment.

HS 5207 - Theoretical Foundations of Health Care
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Establishes a holistic foundation for scholarly inquiry. Holistic perspectives and philosophy, as they inform health care theories, practice, research and ethics are examined. Topics of mind-body connectedness, healing relationships between people and their communities and spiritual relatedness are explored from the perspective of ancient and contemporary holistic descriptions of health and illness. The adequacy of holism for directing evidence-based practice and theory is considered.

HS 5216 - Concept Analysis and Measurement
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Focuses on the role of health-related theory in practice, education and research. Explores the process of theory development, including concept development, theory critique and theory testing. Analyzes procedures for the development of measures of health-related concepts with an emphasis on evaluation of validity and reliability.

HS 5227 - Health Policy, Economics, and Ethics
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Provides the foundation for monitoring and evaluating the effects of ethical professional practice. Resource limitation and allocation in prioritizing and providing care are discussed within the context of ethics and economics. Leadership responsibilities in organizations and in health care policy, reform, and legislation are examined.

HS 5256 - Research Methods
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisite: Undergraduate statistics
Provides the scientific basis for the analysis and use of research to further develop a knowledge base that will maximize the efficacy of practice in a health care setting. Focuses on the critical evaluation of research, the importance of differing research paradigms, research utilization and application of research to establish evidence-based practice.

NUR 5303 - Diagnosis and Management of Acutely Ill Neonates
6 credit hours (2 didactic/4 practicum)
Diagnosis and treatment of diverse critically ill neonates discussed. Interdisciplinary collaboration and referral are stressed. Practica conducted in a variety of community and institutional settings. Issues in advanced practice nursing are considered.

NUR 5304 - Comprehensive Clinical Diagnosis and Management of Acutely Ill Neonates
6 credit hours (2 didactic/4 practicum)
Clinical patient management of sick neonates is addressed. Students learn the skills that are necessary for complete physical assessment, evaluation of laboratory and radiology tests, development of differential diagnosis, and formulation/implementation of a plan of care. Emphasizes the collaborative approaches to patient care management and family nursing care.

HS 5401 - Scholarly Project/Thesis
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisite: N5256
Provides the student with a learning experience in research in which the student implements a research project under the direction of a graduate faculty member. Combines beginning research skills, theoretical knowledge, and clinical experience to study a topic of relevance to graduate level health care practive. Continuous enrollment is required until completion of the project.

HS 5425 - Programmatic Essay and Comprehensive Oral Examination
0 credit hours

NUR 5446 - Family Health Interventions
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Builds on family nursing and other relevant theories to facilitate family well-being. Emphasis is on family health promotion and teaching. Contributions of family nursing research are explored and applied to specific family health issues. Related public policy is analyzed. The nurse's role as family advocate is fostered.

HS 5501 - Principles of Teaching and Learning
4 credit hours (4 didactic/0 practicum)
Considers key theories of human nature, culture, and society related to nursing and allied health education. Emphasis is on teaching-learning styles and processes, and adult learning principles and instructional strategies. Examines major theories of learning and motivation including relationships between theory and practice.

HS 5511 - Curriculum Design, Development and Implementation
4 credit hours (4 didactic/0 practicum)
Examines the nature, purposes and functions of curricula. Considers the assumptions, materials, methods, resources, and evaluation in the designs of various curricula in nursing and health education.

HS 5521 - Roles and Issues in Education
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Overview of nursing and allied health education in philosophical, historical, and sociological perspectives. Investigates roles and functions of leadership as they apply to educational settings, organizational structure, processes and outcomes. Considers funding and financial management of education.

HS 5531 - Seminar and Practicum in Teaching
5 credit hours (2 didactic/3 practicum)
Seminar and practical experience in diverse aspects of the educator role in nursing and allied health. Opportunities to develop skills in teaching, producing, utilizing and evaluating educational programs.

NUR 5601 - Nurse as Healer
4 credit hours (3 didactic/1 practicum)
Course provides experiential learning for enhancing self-awareness to facilitate development of the nurse as a healer. Emphasis will be placed on self-care, and body-mind, spiritual and energetic healing. Historical and theoretical perspectives on healing and holistic nursing practice will be explored.

NUR 5611 - Relationship Centered Care
4 credit hours (3 didactic/1 practicum)
Explores the process of holistic assessment of individuals, education, life coaching, and relationship centered care. Emphasis is placed on exploring health patterns in nutrition, movement, environment, and in selected life transition experiences in wellness and illness. Holistic pratitioner skills in assessing, coaching and teaching are developed in clinical practicum experiences with individuals and groups.

NUR 5621 - Holistic Nursing Practice
5 credit hours (3 didactic/2 practicum)
Implements the role of the nurse-healer in a variety of health care settings. Students integrate a caring-healing practice model into their care of clients and/or groups using caring-healing research processes and theories of health promotion. Select integrative healing modalities are explored. Transformational leadership roles of the holistic nurse practitioner within an evolving health care system are examined.

NUR 5805 - Primary Health Care Delivery
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisite: NUR 5121
Corequisite: NUR 5806 or 5812
Provides the essential foundation for the provision of primary health care to adult clients. The course integrates health screening, healthcare maintenance, and health promotion as well as illness management within the advanced practice nursing role. Critical thinking and differential diagnosis are emphasized. Focus is on evidence-based practice.

NUR 5806 - Community Based Interventions: Adult (for Master's students)
3 credit hours (0 didactic/3 practicum)
Corequisite: NUR 5805
Theory and research-based primary health care in a variety of settings. The nurse practitioner student, working in collaboration with the nurse practitioner/MD preceptor, will focus on the integration of advanced health assessment skills and health promotion with the recognition and management of common health problems.

NUR 5812- Community Based Interventions: Gerontologic (for Master's students)
5 credit hours (0 didactic/5 practicum)
Prerequisite: NUR 5121
Corequisite: NUR 5805
The practicum is designed to prepare the nurse practitioner student to provide theory and research-based primary health care in a variety of settings. The nurse practitioner student, working in collaboration with the nurse practitioner/MD preceptor, will focus on the integration of advanced health assessment skills and health promotion with the recognition and management of common health problems.

NUR 5900 - The Moral Foundations of Nursing
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Traces the development of select moral concepts for nursing: care, trust, hope and advocacy. Moral concepts are explored by examining the nursing literature: theoretical, descriptive, anecdotal and research. This investigation of the moral center of nursing utilizes both principle-based and narrative ethical analysis, theory evaluation and concept analysis. Emphasis is placed on researchable questions in the context of a morally evolving mandate for the nursing profession.

HS 5901 - Special Topic: Spirituality in Health Care
2-3 credit hours (2-3 didactic/0 practicum)
Examines the integral role of spirituality in individuals' response to illness. Research and theory on spirituality in health and illness are presented. The health care provider's therapeutic role related to the client's spiritual nature is emphasized.

HS 5902 - Promoting Quality Care at the End of Life
3 credit hours (3 didactic/0 practicum)
Explores the principles of end-of-life care. These principles are based on the assumptions that individuals live until the moment of death, that care until death may be offered by a variety of healthcare professionals, that care is coordinated and sensitive to diversity, and that death can be experienced as a stage of growth. End-of-life care gives attention to the physical, psychological, social and spiritual concerns of the patient and the patient's family. Loss and bereavement also are explored as they affect the patient, the family and other caregivers.

NUR 5965 - Diagnosis and Management of Variations in Client Health: Adult
2 credit hours (2 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5806
Corequisite: NUR 5967
Content emphasizes the critical analysis of complex health problems commonly seen in primary health care. Legal issues related to collaborative practice and advanced practice nurse licensure will be examined.

NUR 5961: Comprehensive Clinical Diagnosis and Management: Adult
4 credit hours (0 didactic/4 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5806 (or completion of a minimum of 210 practicum hours in NUR 5806)
Corequisite: NUR 5965
Practicum for the advanced nurse practitioner student involves the integration of advanced analysis of a client's health status utilizing assessment, diagnostic, and evaluation skills. Client teaching, referrals, and follow-up will be provided in a variety of primary health care settings.

NUR 5967: Comprehensive Clinical Diagnosis and Management: Adult (for Master's students)
6 credit hours (0 didactic/6 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5806 (or completion of a minimum of 210 practicum hours in NUR 5806)
Corequisite: NUR 5965
Practicum for the advanced nurse practitioner student involves the integration of advanced analysis of a client's health status utilizing assessment, diagnostic, and evaluation skills. Client teaching, referrals, and follow-up will be provided in a variety of primary health care settings.

NUR 5970 - Diagnosis and Management of Variations in Client Health: Gerontologic
2 credit hours (2 didactic/0 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5812
Corequisite: NUR 5972
Content emphasizes the critical analysis of complex health problems commonly seen in primary health care. Legal issues related to collaborative practice and advanced practice nurse licensure will be examined.

NUR 5971: Comprehensive Clinical Diagnosis and Management: Gerontologic
4 credit hours (0 didactic/4 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5812 (or completion of a minimum of 130 clinical hours)
Corequisite: NUR 5970
Practicum for the advanced nurse practitioner student involves the integration of advanced analysis of a client's health status utilizing assessment, diagnostic, and evaluation skills. Client teaching, referrals, and follow-up will be provided in a variety of primary health care settings.

NUR 5972: Comprehensive Clinical Diagnosis and Management: Gerontologic (for Master's students)
26credit hours (0 didactic/6 practicum)
Prerequisites: NUR 5805 and NUR 5812 (or completion of a minimum of 210 clinical hours in NUR 5812)
Corequisite: NUR 5970
Practicum for the advanced nurse practitioner student involves the integration of advanced analysis of a client's health status utilizing assessment, diagnostic, and evaluation skills. Client teaching, referrals, and follow-up will be provided in a variety of primary health care settings.