The Doctor of Nursing Science Program prepares nurse scholars to examine, shape, and direct nursing practice within our evolving system of health care delivery. The Continuing Education Program addresses the emerging needs of practicing nurses in maintaining their clinical expertise. All programs emphasize the development of clinical expertise, a hallmark of Columbia University School of Nursing. The organizing framework, encompassing the concepts of person, environment, health, and nursing, is derived from the philosophy of the School of Nursing. The concept of person recognizes the individual as a growing, human organism best understood in the context of the individual's own life process, beliefs, and culture.
Person is understood to include individuals, families, groups, and communities.
The concept of environment allows for study of the person in relation to the individual's immediate and global surroundings. The surroundings may include neighborhoods, hospitals, or the health care system in general. Health is studied on a health-illness continuum, acknowledging that each person has specific biophysical and psychosocial needs. Nursing is a profession whose members have the responsibility to enhance health care through scientific inquiry, through collaboration with other health professionals, and through client advocacy in the health care system. The School of Nursing programs use a multitheoretical approach to execute these concepts.