2. Overview of Education in
Health Care
The recent developments in the field of health
care have served to highlight the important role
of education in “helping the patients and their
families assume responsibility for self-care
management”.
With the current third party payor system, nurses
are expected to be the prime movers in delivering
high quality, effective and efficient nursing care
which will result to shorter hospital confinement
and continuation of recovery and rehabilitation
through home care and or community-based
nursing care.
3. The teaching function will always be an
integral part of the duties of a professional
nurse. This dates back to the time when
Nursing was given recognition as a
discipline in the 1800’s.
4. Florence Nightingale, who has earned
the title of “Mother of Modern Nursing”,
was the epitome of the true nurse
educator.
She also founded the Florence
Nightingale School of Nursing at St.
Thomas Hospital in London in June 15,
1860.
5.
6. Her ideas were published in two books
which are “Notes on Nursing” and
“Notes on Hospitals”
In 1918, the National League of Nursing
Education (NLNE), recognized the
importance of health teaching as a
responsibility of the nurse for the
promotion of health and prevention of
illness in different settings.
7. In 1938, the NLNE declared that “a
nurse was fundamentally a teacher and
an agent of health regardless of the
setting in which the practice occurred”
In 1950, NLNE specified the course
content dealing with teaching skills,
developmental and educational.
The International Council of Nurses
(ICN) has endorsed health education as
an esssential requisite for the delivery
nursing care.
8. Today, Nurse Practice Acts (NPAs) in
the US universally include teaching
within the scope of nursing practice
responsibilities.
In 1993, the Joint Commission on
Accreditation of Healthcare Organization
(JCAHO), delineated nursing standards
or mandates for patient education which
are based on positive outcomes for
patient care.
9. In 1998, the Pew Health Professions Commission
released a follow-up on health professional
practice(as cited by Bastable,2003):
i. Provide clinically competent and coordinated care
to the public
ii. Involve patients and their families in the decision-
making process regarding health interventions
iii. Provide clients with education and counseling on
ethical issues
iv. Expand public access to effective care
v. Ensure cost-effective and appropriate care for the
consumer
vi. Provide for prevention of illness and promotion of
healthy lifestyles for all Americans
10. Effective health education programs are
envisioned to cut health care costs
The battle cry is to “attain and maintain
healthy lifestyles through education”
since the leading causes of morbidity
and mortality are lifestyle-related
diseases.
