Nursing Competencies in the Nursing Curriculum

Abstract

Florence Nightingale is the modern founder of nursing and professionalized nursing by creating training programs for aspiring nurses. Nursing standards for education started in the early days of nursing education, beginning in the late 1800s. National accreditation standards shape nursing educational programs and clinical practices; however, state-level boards of nursing establish and monitor practice standards. Nursing education accreditation agencies recently shifted their focus to competency-based education, including core abilities required to function as a nurse, provide comprehensive care, and meet patients' complex and diverse needs in every setting. This manuscript reviews the state of current competencies that educational institutions are adopting. A relationship between competencies, standards of practice, and emerging opportunities is needed to develop further education programs that address current clinical practice needs in today's technical and post-pandemic work and clinical environments.