Includes bibliographical references and index.

Professional Nursing : History and Development of the Nursing Profession -- The Essence of Nursing : Knowledge and Caring -- Nursing Education, Accreditation, and Regulation -- Success in Your Nursing Education Program -- Health Policy and Political Action -- Ethics and Legal Issues -- Health Promotion, Disease Prevention, and Illness : Community and Population Health Perspectives -- The Healthcare Delivery System : Focus on Acute Care -- Provide Patient-Centered Care -- Work in Interprofessional Teams -- Employ Evidence-Based Practice -- Apply Quality Improvement -- Utilize Informatics -- The Future : Transformation of Nursing Practice through Leadership.

"Professional Nursing Concepts takes a patient-centered, traditional approach to nursing education and provides the foundation pre-licensure nursing students need in order to successfully transition into practice. Grounded in the Institute of Medicine's five core competencies for healthcare professionals, the current edition logically flows from the basics of the nursing profession and the dynamics of patient care into critical healthcare delivery discussions, ranging from health policy and political action to community health and leadership in nursing practice. Each chapter features discussion questions, critical thinking activities, and "stop and consider" sections that encourage students to reflect on important chapter topics in meaningful ways. Students can further interact with text content in "Working Backwards to Develop a Case", an in-text feature that allows students to creatively apply what they have learned to their own unique case scenarios, bringing these foundational concepts to life. Above all, Professional Nursing Concepts reminds students that quality patient care is at the heart of the nursing profession. The fifth edition will continue to focus heavily on a patient-centered approach and will include new and updated features to engage students in their own learning. References will be updated as appropriate. The following changes are proposed for this fifth edition. Note that there are no new chapters planned but the text addresses some reviewer concerns, such as a need for more emphasis on community and population health perspectives and evidence-based practice"--