Degree Plans

School of Nursing and Health Professions

The mission of the School of Nursing and Health Professions is to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word, through the educational preparation of health professionals. The faculty’s goal is to provide excellent student-centered health professions education that will promote leadership development in the respective health disciplines. Faculty believe in collaborative learning promoting a philosophy of life that values the dignity of the individual and serves as a guide for making ethical-moral decisions.

The school seeks to graduate health professionals whose practice is rooted in the spiritual heritage of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word. Graduates will be prepared as generalist practitioners in their respective disciplines and will be prepared for graduate education.

The School of Nursing and Health Professions offers undergraduate programs in Athletic Training, Nuclear Medicine, Nursing, Physical Education, and Sports Management. Each of these programs is described in detail in the following sections under the appropriate department.

Department of Human Performance

The mission of the Department of Human Performance is to provide a strong professional foundation for students in each major/concentration and to contribute to the Core Curriculum through course work in Wellness and Physical Education.

ATHLETIC TRAINING (ATHP)

An athletic trainer is a qualified health care professional educated and experienced in the management of the health care problems associated with sports participation. In cooperation with physicians and other health care professionals, the athletic trainer functions as a member of the athletic health care team in secondary schools, colleges and universities, professional sports programs, sports medicine clinics and other athletic health care settings.

KINESIOLOGY (PEHP)

The program of study leading to the Bachelor of Science degree prepares students for three career paths. Graduates can prepare to teach physical education in elementary or secondary schools. Graduates may also prepare for work in the private sector, in camps or in fitness centers by choosing a non-certification or personal trainer concentration. Details of the requirements for Teacher Certification are explained in the education section of the Undergraduate Bulletin.

NUCLEAR MEDICINE SCIENCE (NMED)

The Nuclear Medicine Science program offers an accredited curriculum leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science. The mission of the Nuclear Medicine program is to prepare individuals with the clinical and didactic experience necessary for successful entry into the Nuclear Medicine profession.

The goal of the Nuclear Medicine program is to enable the student to confidently possess the knowledge and skills necessary to safely perform a wide variety of clinical procedures, effectively communicate with patients with competent skills in: radiopharmaceutical dosage, calculation and administration, the operation of imaging devices, and operation of radiation detection monitoring devices.

Nuclear Medicine is a medical specialty that uses safe, micro-quantities of radioactive pharmaceuticals for diagnosis, management, treatment and prevention of many serious diseases. Nuclear Medicine imaging techniques provide information about both the function and structure of every organ in the body, often identifying organ abnormalities very early in the progression of a disease. This early detection allows a disease to be treated early in its course, when there may be a more positive prognosis.

The student choosing nuclear medicine technology as a career should have a strong interest in the natural sciences, mathematics, and computer technology as well as the desire for close patient contact, direct interaction with physicians and other health care professionals. Immediately upon graduation, a student is eligible to apply for national certification/ registration examinations given by the Nuclear Medicine Technology Certification Board (NMTCB) or the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (ARRT).

As a highly specialized member of the health care profession, graduates from this degree program have several vocational options, including but not limited to, Nuclear Medicine Technology (hospitals, clinics, research laboratories, regulatory agencies), entry into medical or graduate schools, and careers in education or administration in the specialty.

Faculty includes mathematicians, physicists, technologists, physicians, radiopharmacists, radiation physicists, each with a special focus and integrated perspective.

NURSING (NURS)

The Nursing program offers an accredited curriculum in nursing leading to the degree of Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). Within the program there are two pathways, one designed for students without previous preparation in nursing, the Generic Pathway, and the other designed for registered nurses, the Alternate Pathway.

The mission of the nursing program is to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word, through the educational preparation of professional nurses and to serve as a center for leadership development. The goal of the nursing program is to positively affect the health of people in San Antonio and South Texas by:

  1. Preparing professional nurses whose practice is rooted in the spiritual heritage of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word,
  2. Supporting the growth and direction of the nursing profession through involvement in professional organizations,
  3. Contributing to new knowledge through research, consultation, and by supporting continuing professional education for the nursing community,
  4. Forming partnerships with communities and other health care providers to provide holistic care to people who are healthy and ill.

The curriculum of the nursing program is designed to prepare the student for roles in contemporary and future nursing practice.

At the completion of the BSN program the student will be prepared to:

  1. Develop caring relationships based on Christian values and a preferential option for the economically poor.

  2. Challenge social inequalities influencing health and work to shape health policy.

  3. Integrate theory and research-based knowledge from the arts, humanities, and sciences to develop a foundation for practice.

  4. Use written, spoken, and technological skills to communicate effectively.

  5. Use critical thinking skills through a systematic approach to making clinical judgments about the nursing needs of persons, families, and communities in a variety of settings and across the lifespan.

  6. Safely use therapeutic nursing interventions to assist persons to achieve or maintain health or experience dignified death.

  7. Use beginning leadership, management, and research skills to coordinate, deliver, and evaluate nursing care in a variety of settings.

  8. Collaborate with persons, other health care providers, and community leaders in identifying and proposing solutions to responses to ever-changing health problems.

  9. Practice nursing according to the standards of the Nursing Practice Act of the State of Texas, the American Nurses Association Code for Nurses, and the appropriate ANA Standards of Practice.

  10. Engage in continued personal and professional development in an ever-widening world of discovery and new knowledge.