Creighton University School of Nursing Fact Sheet
Overview
Creighton University School of Nursing has achieved a national reputation for innovative programs that keep pace with the ever-changing field of nursing. Creighton was the first nursing school in Nebraska to offer a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree and preparation for one of the newest nursing roles, the Clinical Nurse Leader.
In 1928, the St. Joseph School of Nursing began its affiliation with Creighton University. St. Joseph nursing students completed part of their curriculum at Creighton and upon earning their diplomas, could attend Creighton to complete baccalaureate degrees (BSN). In 1958, Creighton accepted students into the four-year collegiate baccalaureate nursing program. The School is dedicated to continuing a legacy of excellence in nursing education and commitment to service.
The nursing faculty has developed a comprehensive baccalaureate program that teaches the skills, knowledge and lifelong learning proficiency necessary to practice in a myriad of clinical settings. The curriculum emphasizes care management and outcomes improvement in relation to health promotion, restoration, rehabilitation, self-care, acute care and tertiary care.
In addition, there is focus on health care policy and economics, research methods, quality indicators, outcome measures, financial management and management of data and technology.
A Creighton education helps develop and refine the leadership, critical-thinking and clinical-judgment skills that allow graduates to participate as full partners in health care delivery and the shaping of health policy.
Creighton University has a Hastings, Neb., campus that opened in 1986.
Faculty
- Eleanor Howell, Ph.D., R.N., serves as dean. She was interim dean in 2002 and was appointed dean in 2003.
- The School of Nursing has one endowed chair, The Dr. C.C. and Mabel L. Criss and Drs. Gilbert and Clinton Beirne Endowed Chair, held by Joan Lappe, Ph.D., R.N
- During the 2010-2011 school year, faculty members made presentations and provided consultation in China, Dominican Republic, Africa and Mexico.
- The School of Nursing has a faculty-student ratio of 1:8-10 in clinical experiences.
- There are currently 46 full-time faculty members (40 in Omaha and five in Hastings) and five part-time faculty members on the Omaha and Hastings campuses. The school has approximately 15 contributed-service faculty members who provide expertise in a variety of specialized areas.
- Creighton is represented professionally at the state and national levels on several nursing and health care committees and organizations.
Students
- 545 undergraduate students; 221 graduate students.
- The accelerated nursing program began in 1975 and is one of the oldest second-degree, accelerated nursing programs in the United States. Each year, approximately 120 accelerated nursing students graduate. Many come to Nebraska from the western part of the United States, although interest is increasing among prospective students from the East and South. Students’ backgrounds are diverse in terms of previous degrees and occupations. Accelerated students consistently demonstrate a high level of success on national licensing exams and are sought-after for employment upon graduation.
- There are 101 freshmen enrolled in the traditional undergraduate program for fall 2011. Twenty-one percent are from Nebraska; other key states from which students hail include Minnesota, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.
- There are545 undergraduate, 101 master’s level and 118 doctor of nursing practice students enrolled for the fall of 2011.
- The undergraduate program includes 40 male students and 69 minority students. In the graduate program, there are 12 male students and 13 minority students.
Curriculum
- The School of Nursing offers undergraduate and graduate degrees. The bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) has three curricula tracks: a traditional curriculum designed for the high school graduate; an accelerated curriculum designed for persons with non-nursing degrees; and a registered nurse-to-bachelor of nursing curriculum. The graduate program includes a master of science in nursing program (MSN) and a doctor of nursing practice program (DNP). Advanced degrees offer the opportunity to prepare for the roles of nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist, clinical nurse leader, clinical systems administrator and nurse educator. A new graduate track, Advanced Public Health-Global Health has been added in response to a growing demand for public health nurses. The DNP track is designed for nurses seeking a terminal degree in nursing practice and offers an alternative to research-focused Ph.D. programs.
- To prepare nurses for possible complex issues surrounding employment, practice or nursing rights, the school collaborates with the Werner Institute for Negotiation and Dispute Resolution, to infuse interdisciplinary knowledge and programming into various graduate nursing curricula.
Nursing as a Career
- Nursing is an excellent career choice. Well-educated nurses are in demand. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 22 percent increase in “new R. positions” will be created through 2018. That is more than 581,500 new nurse positions.
- Nurses have the opportunity to save and improve lives, teach people how to achieve better health and advocate for patients to ensure they have the best possible health care.
- In addition to work in hospital settings, there is growing need for nurses in home-health agencies, mental-health settings, long-term-care facilities, managed-care centers and community health. The demand for nurses with advanced degrees, such as nurse anesthetists, nurse practitioners, educators and scientists, is also growing.
Points of Pride
- Creighton BSN graduates continue to exceed the national average for first-time pass rates on the national licensing exam.
- Creighton was the first nursing school in Nebraska to offer the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree and preparation for the newest nursing role, the Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL). Creighton is one of only 100 nursing schools in the nation preparing graduates that are eligible to sit for the certification as a Clinical Nurse Leader,
- Creighton was one of the original national pilot sites for the CNL curriculum. A revolutionary new nursing role, CNL’s are master’s degree-prepared clinicians. The program prepares nurses as generalists with advanced nursing knowledge and provides the skills for clinical leadership within a specified area of health care.
- The School of Nursing, through a creative collaboration with 32 private and parochial schools in Omaha, provides annual health assessments for more than 8,000 children. This program enables children to get legally mandated health assessments and for the School of Nursing to have additional well-child and adolescent clinical sites.
- The Clinical Learning Laboratory is equipped with adult, child and infant human patient simulators—life-size mannequins with pulmonary, cardiovascular and other systems mimicking human physiology—that respond automatically to a user’s interventions and to the environment. Students are able to practice physical exams, airway manipulations, cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and trauma-care procedures on the mannequins.
- Creighton University School of Nursing’s four-year bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) curriculum celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2008.
- A team of Creighton students received national recognition for their development of the “compassionate care tool kit,” developed to assist hepatitis C patients and their families.
- Creighton’s master’s degree program in nursing continues to rank in the top 100 graduate programs in nursing by US News and World Report’s “America’s Best Graduate Schools.”