School of Nursing

Tony Umadhay, PhD, CRNA, APRN, Dean & Professor of Nursing

Indra Hershorin PhD, RN, CNE, Program Director & Professor of Nursing

Program Overview

The Undergraduate Program in Nursing has a seventy-year history of excellence in preparing professional nurses at the baccalaureate level as nurse generalists. There are two pathways to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N)—Traditional Program

The Traditional Option is a four-year program: the first two years allow for completion of all pre-nursing, liberal arts requirements. Upon successful completion of these requirements, the student may then apply for admission to the nursing program and complete upper-level nursing courses (years three and four). Students may be admitted to begin the upper level nursing courses in the fall or spring semesters. Upon completion of all pre-nursing and upper division nursing credits the student is awarded a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree and is eligible to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN).

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN)—Accelerated Option

The Accelerated Option is designed for students who already have a bachelor’s degree in another discipline and now wish to pursue a bachelor’s degree in nursing (B.S.N.). The Accelerated Option is an intensive, fifteen-month program. Upon completion of all pre-nursing and upper division nursing credits the student is awarded a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree and is eligible to apply for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX-RN).

Purpose

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.) program consists of the Traditional and Accelerated, options. The undergraduate program is based on a Judeo-Christian heritage and humanistic framework which seeks to lay a foundation for safe, compassionate, and multicultural sensitive professional practice. The undergraduate program prepares beginning practitioners of professional nursing to provide health care in a variety of settings.

Accreditation

The undergraduate nursing program was originally approved by the Florida Board of Nursing (FBON) in 1953. The FBON may be contacted at 4052 Bald Cypress Way Bin C-02 Tallahassee, FL 32399. In December 1962, the program received accreditation by the National League for Nursing (NLN). The baccalaureate in nursing degree at Barry University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington D.C. 20001, (202) 887‑6791.

Philosophy of Nursing

This philosophy describes the beliefs of the nursing faculty of Barry University about person, society, health, illness, and professional nursing. The philosophy evolves from the University mission which is congruent with the College of Health and Wellness (CHW) philosophy and supports the purpose of the Nursing Program.

The faculty believe that all humans are unique beings who have intrinsic value endowed in them by their Creator. Humans manifest a mind-body-spirit unity, which encourages creativity, harmony, and health. The essence of human unity is the individual’s culture, spiritual experience, environment, and changing life circumstances. We respect diversity, multiple realities, and individual choices of all per-sons. We place value on the life of all human beings within the context of family, community, and society.

Society is the dynamic and constructed setting within which all persons exist and interact. Nursing occurs in the framework of a global society valuing cultural, social, and intellectual diversity. Professional nursing carries with it the social responsibility to shape and transform the environment, to improve health, and eliminate healthcare disparities for all people. Within society, each defined community provides a unique, multidimensional context for learning.

The faculty believe that health is the balance of mind‐body‐spirit which is interpreted and ex-pressed in individuals and groups. The experience of illness is an alteration in the harmony of the mind‐body‐spirit. Health and illness are not considered dichotomous experiences; both are human experiences occurring simultaneously. Understanding simultaneity is fundamental to the diagnosis and treatment of human experiences and responses.

Focusing in a holistic manner across the life span, professional nursing roles involve evidence-based practices that are preventative, restorative, and promotive. Evolving professional roles are acknowledged and fostered.

The knowledge base for professional nursing practice is derived from the liberal arts, nursing science, and related professional studies. Professional nursing education facilitates the socialization process, the development of values and professional behavior, and the social construction of policies which affect health at local, national, and international levels. The faculty believe that the baccalaureate degree in nursing is the entry level for professional nursing practice. Nursing education at the master’s level is the minimal preparation for advanced nursing practice. Doctoral nursing education pre-pares nurses as expert clinicians, educators, leaders, researchers, scholars, policymakers, and visionaries.

Nursing scholarship advances the knowledge base of the discipline by promoting inquiry, generating new knowledge, translating research into practice, and selecting theoretical knowledge that is compatible with our professional values and practices. Inquiry is paramount to competence in professional practice and lifelong learning. The unique focal area of our inquiry is multicultural health.

The curricula of the nursing programs are transformational and based on the belief that society and nursing are ever‐changing. This attention to nursing’s influence on communities and society supports our focal area of multicultural health by providing opportunities for scholarship, research, teaching, and community service. The curricula promote and facilitate analytical reasoning, critical thinking, evidence-based practice, and the ability to construct knowledge.

The philosophy of the Nursing Program articulates with the philosophy of the CHW and the University mission through the major characteristics of: knowledge and truth, religious dimension, collaborative service, social justice, and an inclusive community which celebrates the diversity of students, staff, faculty, and community. The nursing faculty embrace Barry University’s international dimension, respect for human dignity, Dominican spirit of scholarship and service and commitment to a nurturing environment, social responsibility, and leadership.

Mission of the Undergraduate Nursing Program

The Undergraduate Nursing program embraces the core commitments and values expressed in the University Mission which is to provide a high-quality education grounded in the liberal arts and sciences. The program provides educational experiences which are transformative and inclusive to establish a foundation for nursing as an applied science and practice discipline. The faculty is dedicated to educating nurses who honor and respect human dignity and who are prepared to take a leading role in meeting the health care needs of an ever-changing global community.

Curriculum

The undergraduate nursing faculty has developed a comprehensive curriculum designed for the nursing student’s transformational progression into professional nursing practice. This program provides optimum learning opportunities based on core values that are integrated throughout the curriculum and are congruent with the Barry University mission and College of Health and Wellness philosophy.

The undergraduate nursing curriculum is based on seven integrating concepts: patient centered care, clinical reasoning and safe practice, quality improvement, professionalism, informatics, evidence-based practice, and teamwork and collaboration. These concepts evolve from beliefs about nursing, health, human beings, and their environment; the American Nurses Association definition of nursing as a profession; and from a solid base in liberal arts education. This conceptualization provides a foundation for practice in a complex healthcare environment that is ever-changing.

The baccalaureate curricular elements and framework are faculty led and based on recommendations from key stakeholders and evidence from landmark reports. Achievement of learning outcomes based on the curriculum will enable graduates to assume the roles of provider of care, health care team member, and manager/coordinator of safe, quality patient care as a nurse generalist.

Student Learning Outcomes

In accordance with The Essentials: Core Competencies for Professional Nursing Education of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (2021), the faculty identified the following outcomes expected of each student at the end of the baccalaureate program in nursing:

Assimilate knowledge, skills, and values from the arts and sciences to provide humanistic, safe, quality care as a nurse generalist.
Domain 1: Knowledge for Nursing Practice
Use clinical reasoning to formulate decisions regarding safe, quality healthcare outcomes.
Domain 5: Quality and Safety
Domain 7: Systems-Based Practice
Domain 8: Informatics and Healthcare Technologies
Integrate evidence-based practice to provide safe, compassionate, and holistic patient/family centered care in diverse settings.
Domain 4: Scholarship for the Nursing Discipline
Domain 3: Population Health
Communicate effectively with all members of the health care team, including patients and their support systems to improve patient outcomes.
Domain 6: Interprofessional Partnerships
Domain 2: Person-Centered Care
Domain 8: Informatics and Healthcare Technologies
Integrate health promotion, disease, and injury prevention strategies in the care of individuals, families, and -communities.
Domain 3: Population Health
Domain 2: Person-Centered Care
Domain 9: Professionalism
Apply leadership concepts, skills, and decision making in the provision of high-quality nursing care.
Domain 10: Personal, Professional, and Leadership Development
Domain 2: Person-Centered Care
Domain 7: Systems-Based Practice
Demonstrate proficiency in using patient care technologies, information systems, and communication devices to support safe nursing practice.
Domain 8: Informatics and Healthcare Technologies
Evaluate the impact of political, legal, and ethical factors on the health of individuals, families, and communities from a global perspectives.
Domain 1: Knowledge for Nursing Practice
Domain 9: Professionalism
Domain 3: Population Health
Domain 4: Scholarship for the Nursing Discipline
Domain 7: Systems-Based Practice
Integrate professional standards of moral, ethical, and legal conduct into nursing practice.
Domain 9: Professionalism
Domain 1: Knowledge for Nursing Practice
Domain 10: Personal, Professional, and Leadership Development

Core Performance Standards

The faculty, having accepted that nursing is a practice discipline with cognitive, sensory, affective, and psychomotor requirements, has adapted a list of “Core Performance Standards” based on a document of the Southern Council on Collegiate Education for Nursing. The knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to successfully achieve a B.S.N. degree are based on the following core performance standards.

Dimension	Standard	Examples of necessary activities (not all-inclusive)
Critical Thinking	Critical-thinking ability sufficient for clinical judgment	Identify cause/effect relationships in clinical situations, develop nursing care plans
Interpersonal	Interpersonal abilities sufficient for interaction with individuals, families and groups from various social, emotional, cultural and intellectual backgrounds	Establish rapport with patients/clients and colleagues
Communication	Communication abilities sufficient for verbal and written interaction with others	Explain treatment procedures, initiate health teaching, and document and interpret nursing actions and patient/client responses
Mobility	Physical abilities sufficient for movement from room to room and in small spaces	Move around in patient’s room, work spaces and treatment areas; administer cardiopulmonary procedures
Motor Skills	Gross and fine motor abilities sufficient for providing safe, effective nursing care	Calibrate and use equipment; position patients/clients
Hearing	Auditory ability sufficient for monitoring and assessing health needs	Hear monitor alarm, emergency signals, auscultatory sounds and cries for help
Visual	Visual ability sufficient for observation and assessment necessary in nursing care	Observe patient/client responses
Tactile	Tactile ability sufficient for physical assessment	Perform palpation, functions of physical examination and/or those related to therapeutic intervention (such as insertion of a catheter)

Reference:

Southern Regional Education Board

The Americans with Disabilities Act: Implications for Nursing Education

(2008, US Department of Justice, Office of Civil Rights)

http://www.sreb.org/publication/americans-disabilities-act

https://www.sreb.org/publication/americans-disabilities-act

Admission Process

Candidates may apply for admission to the Traditional Option BSN Program or the Accelerated Option 2^ndDegree BSN Program. Candidates are selected for admission based on high promise for program completion and academic success. These include:

Completed application.
Two letters of recommendation from a professional reference and/or previous faculty knowledgeable of the applicant’s academic potential.
Updated resume
A baccalaureate degree granted from as regionally/nationally accredited or internationally recognized college or university (Accelerated Option 2^ndDegree BSN Program).
Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be submitted directly to Barry University.
TEAS Nursing Entrance Exam score of 62.
Minimum cumulative college GPA OF 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
Prerequisite courses must be completed at a regionally accredited or internationally recognized college or university. A letter grade of C or better for all pre-requisite courses. A maximum of 3 attempts to achieve a letter grade of C or better in all pre-requisite courses.

The pre-requisite courses provide a foundation for learning that the BSN students receive at Barry University. If admission is offered all pre-requisites courses must be completed prior to taking nursing courses.

The above criteria are evaluated as a composite package serving as an indicator of predictive success in the program. The Admissions Committee will rank all applicants as Accepted, Accepted Conditionally, or Not Accepted. Applicants may be required to complete a personal interview and fulfill specific requirements or conditions prior to an admission decision.

Admission is on a competitive basis for a limited number of positions. As result, applicants may meet minimum admission requirements but not be selected for admission to the program. Applicants are advised to contact the Office of Financial Aid to investigate funding options at the time they are considering submission of their application package.

Health and Screening Compliance Requirements

The School of Nursing maintains an agreement with American Data-Bank/Complio to monitor compliance with health and screening requirements. All students must show evidence of annual physical examination, a two-step PPD, and Influenza vaccination are required. Students must show proof of Measles, Mumps, and Rubella Vaccine (MMR), Varicella, Tetanus-Diphtheria, and Hepatitis B vaccination. Only the Hepatitis B vaccine may be waived. All other vaccines are required and need to be completed. Additionally, a drug and background screen must be completed prior to starting the BSN program. Students must have adequate health insurance coverage in the State of Florida. For further information please see the Undergraduate Nursing Student Handbook and/or the College of Health and Wellness website: www.barry.edu. Failure to comply with these requirements will result In an Inability to progress in the program.

Basic Life Support

All students must be certified in Basic Life Support (BLS) for Healthcare Providers by the American Heart Association (AHA). Courses may be taken at Barry University or an approved BLS provider prior to entering the nursing program. BLS certification is mandatory for all students.

Transportation

Clinical learning experiences require that students have access to transportation. Since many experiences occur in the community and other affiliations, students should own, or have access to, a car. Unavailability of private transportation will not excuse the student from meeting clinical learning objectives. Students without their own private car should familiarize themselves with local public transportation prior to the beginning of the semester. Students are encouraged to be proactive in arranging transportation needs. Faculty and clinical adjuncts do not provide transportation for students. Clinical assignments are done by random allocation within Dade and Broward counties and are NOT determined by the individual student’s geographic location or transportation particulars.

Computer Requirements

Upon the start of the program, accepted candidates are required to possess a laptop computer with specified software which conforms to criteria established by the Program. Cellphones and/ or tablets are not permissible devices for testing. Applicants are advised that portions of the didactic coursework are web-based and also provided in conjunction with telecommunications or video teleconferencing instruction. Candidates should possess basic computer literacy skills, including the use of word-processing, Windows or IOS operating systems, electronic mail, and navigation of Internet applications.

Progression Requirements and Standards

Maintain current health and compliance requirements. Failure to submit evidence of compliance as directed will result in an administrative withdrawal from the course, consequently the student must wait until the next time the course is offered to progress.
Earn a final grade of an overall weighted and unrounded average of 76% in all nursing courses.
Students who fail a course Medication Calculation Test after 3 attempts will receive a W grade and will retake course the next time it is offered.
Earn a passing grade in the clinical portion of nursing courses.
A clinical failure is considered a course failure regardless of didactic grade.
One nursing course may be repeated one time.
Only in an emergency may a student request an incomplete “I” grade. It is the student’s responsibility to arrange with the faculty for satisfactory completion of course requirements. An incomplete grade must be redeemed within the semester following its receipt, unless otherwise stated, or the student will automatically be awarded a final grade of “F”. “I” grades even when redeemed are part of the official transcript.
Students may not register for courses in the next semester until the incomplete from the previous semester has been satisfied.
The CHW strictly adheres to the Academic Dishonesty Policy as described in the Policies and Procedures section of this catalog.
A student receiving a second failure (D or F) in any UG nursing course will not be permitted to continue in the nursing program and will not be eligible for readmission.
Grades of D and F are considered a failure.

Grading Policy

The following grading policy exists for the Traditional and Accelerated options

Grading Scale

Grading Scale for Undergraduate Nursing Program

1. Class:

Tests
92–100	A
84–91	B
76–83	C
69–75	D
0–68	F

2. Clinical: Pass/Fail

Standardized Assessment Program

The Traditional and Accelerated Option programs seek to facilitate the success of its students for entry into professional clinical practice as a nurse generalist. As part of this process, the faculty utilizes a standardized assessment program which includes a series of content specific exams, remediation programs, and final comprehensive predictor examinations to assess knowledge of concepts and readiness for the national licensure examination (NCLEX-RN). All students are required to participate in this program. Detailed policies and procedures for standardized testing may be found in the School of Nursing Undergraduate Nursing Student Handbook.

Graduation and NCLEX-RN Testing

Students are eligible for graduation after all program requirements have been satisfactorily met and verified by the Undergraduate Program Director. After graduation and completion of virtual NCLEX preparation materials, students are qualified to apply for licensure by examination with a State Board of Nursing. A letter of completion and official transcript is usually sufficient evidence to apply for licensure by examination in most states. Students are advised to contact the Board of Nursing in the state they intend to take their licensure exam for detailed instructions. Official transcripts may not be available for up to two months after graduation. Faculty recommends students take the NCLEX-RN examination within 3 months after graduation.

As part of the licensure application process, arrest, and court records of final adjudication for any offense other than a minor traffic violation must be submitted to the Board of Nursing for review.

Effective July 1, 2009, Title XXXII Section 456.0635, Florida Statutes, requires health care boards or the Department of Health to refuse renewal of a license, certificate, or registration, or admit a candidate for examination, if the applicant meets certain conditions. Florida Statues: Title XXXII FLS 409; Title XLVI FLS 817 and FLS 893. Website for Florida Statues www.flsenate.gov.

The application and records should be filed at least ninety days before the examination date in case a student may be required to appear before the Board.

Graduation Requirements

Students should refer to the Barry University undergraduate catalog for specific undergraduate graduation requirements. Students are responsible to meet with their advisors to apply for graduation according to posted dates on the University website. Upon successful completion of all requisites for graduation, the student is eligible to take the National Council Licensure Examination-RN (NCLEX-RN).

Nursing; Prefix NUR

Theory credit: 1 credit = 15 contact hours

Clinical credit: 1 credit = 45 contact hours

Lab credit: 1 credit = 45 hours contact hours

300 Special Topics (Theory: 1 - 3 credits)

Content to be determined each semester as requested by faculty and/or students to fill specified needs or interests.