Department of Nursing
Outcome Characteristics
Lewis University prepares its BSN graduates to enter the profession of nursing as baccalaureate generalist with the following essential competencies:
- Integrate knowledge from liberal arts and sciences into professional nursing practice that promotes cognitive development and engages ethical reasoning, advocacy, collaboration, and social justice.
- Provide leadership and management of human and systems resources to establish a culture of safety and quality nursing care.
- Utilize research, expert practice, and patient preferences to guide and validate nursing practice.
- Utilize technology and informatics to ethically and legally manage information to guide practice decisions for improving healthcare outcomes.
- Use an ethical framework to explore the impact of sociocultural, economic, legal, and political factors to advocate for change that will improve the health of all members of society.
- Use interdisciplinary and intraprofessional communication and collaboration skills to deliver evidence-based patient-centered care.
- Engage in health promotion and clinical prevention for individuals and populations to promote culturally congruent health outcomes across the life-span.
- Integrate ethical principles and professional values into decisions that demonstrate respect for the diversity of individuals and populations reflecting the evolving nature of nursing practice.
- Value and assume responsibility for self-directed, interactive learning as a lifelong process to improve health outcomes for a variety of populations in diverse settings.
Curriculum
Students take a concentration of natural and behavioral sciences, humanities, and electives during the first two years of the program. The Nursing major is taken primarily at the upper-division level. The professional education requirements are organized so that knowledge, understanding, and skills are developed progressively throughout the program.
The major coursework in Nursing is concentrated at the upper-division level to permit students to develop a foundation of liberal education and scientific knowledge that can then be utilized within the Nursing courses. The Nursing curriculum is patient centered and evidence based with a focus on quality and safety initiatives designed to reflect change in emerging healthcare systems. The program of Nursing utilizes technology such as patient-centered simulations and electronic health records, thus introducing students to current healthcare informatic technologies.
Affiliating Agencies
The following agencies provide on-site clinical experience for Lewis University nursing students. Please consult with your advisor for the most current listing.
AMITA Health Adventist Medical Center, Bolingbrook
AMITA Health Adventist Medical Center, Hinsdale
AMITA Health Adventist Medical Center, LaGrange
AMITA Health St. Joseph’s Medical Center, Joliet
Advocate Aurora Christ Medical Center, Oak Lawn
Advocate Aurora Hope Children’s Hospital, Oak Lawn
Advocate Aurora Good Samaritan Hospital, Downers Grove
Advocate Aurora South Suburban Hospital, Hazel Crest
Almost Home Kids, Naperville
Downers Grove Community School District #58, Downers Grove
DuPage Community Clinic, Wheaton
Edward Hines, Jr. Veterans Administration Hospital, Hines
Edward-Elmhurst Health Edward Hospital, Naperville
Joliet Area Community Hospice, Joliet
Joliet Catholic Charities, Joliet
La Rabida Children's Hospital, Chicago
Linden Oaks Hospital, Naperville
Morris Hospital, Morris
Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital, Winfield
Northwestern Medicine Delnor Community Hospital, Geneva
Northwestern Medicine Palos Community Hospital, Palos Heights
Plainfield School District, Plainfield
Residential Home Health, Naperville
Rush-Copley Memorial Hospital, Aurora
Rush Oak Park Hospital, Oak Park
Silver Cross Hospital, New Lenox
Trinity Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood
Trinity Loyola Medical Health Systems Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, Melrose Park
Trinity Loyola Medical Health Systems MacNeal Hospital, Berwyn
University of Chicago Ingalls Memorial Hospital, Harvey
University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital
Vista Health Systems, Waukegan
Warren-Sharpe Community Center, Joliet
Will County Health Department, Joliet
Will-Grundy Clinic, Joliet
Requirements
Admission, progression, curriculum, and graduation policies of the prelicensure track are subject to change in order to comply with the requirements of the current Illinois Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act, Rules for the Administration of Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act, and The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing Practice (American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 2008).
The Bachelor of Science in Nursing requires the successful completion of the following courses. Progression from semester to semester requires successful completion of all Nursing courses from earlier semesters. A curriculum paradigm for ROTC Nursing majors is available from the College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
Admission Requirements
1. Cumulative GPA of 2.75
2. Successful completion of College Board Scores
a. ACT minimum score of 22 in Math and 22 in Reading
b. SAT minimum score of 540 in Math and 560 in Reading
c. KAT testing with a minimum score of 82 in Math and 78 in Reading Comprehension.
d. ATI TEAS exam with a minimum composite score of 67 percent
3. All official transcripts must be submitted