Deicke Center for Nursing Education

Nursing Today

Nursing has a long, proud history as one of society’s most trusted professions. Combining leadership and communication skills with deep scientific understanding, nurses design, provide, manage, and coordinate health care.

Today’s nurses are actively involved in every aspect of health care and management, from improving the quality of patient care in complex organizations to engaging in clinical prevention activities that optimize community health. This important work relies on a number of key skills and characteristics, including:

• Strong leadership skills
• The ability to use analytical methods in evidence-based practice
• Familiarity with information management and patient care technology in health care settings
• A strong understanding of health care policy, finance, and regulatory environments
• Excellent inter-personal communication and collaboration skills

The core values of nursing are altruism, recognition of every person’s autonomy and human dignity, integrity according to the profession’s code of ethics and accepted standards of practice, and a commitment to social justice.