Standards For the Evaluation of Mission Statement of Nursing Division Dr. Belal Hijji, RN, PhD

22 Learning Outcomes At the end of this teaching session, students will be able to: Define the mission (purpose) statement as it relates to nursing services. Describe the standards that nurses should follow when evaluating the mission statement of a nursing division.

33 Mission or Purpose The mission of an organisation, such as a hospital, describes the specific purposes or reasons for which it exists. The mission of health care organisations such as hospitals and primary health centres is to provide health care services to maintain health, cure illness, alleviate pain and suffering. A mission statement is the first step in the strategic planning process. Industry leaders explicitly refer to their customers when they write their mission statements. Mission statements move the organisation forward and are formulated for performance, products, and services. It is widely held that the mission statement is created from vision statement that describes the things for which an institution stands.

44 Standards For the Evaluation of Mission Statement of Nursing Division Mission Statement of a Nursing Division The mission of the Division of Nursing supports the Mission statement of the Metropolitan Medical Center. It is the purpose of the Division to: 1.Uphold the written standards of quality of care for our patients. 2.Encourage an atmosphere that fosters professional developm- ent of nursing staff. 3.Promote nursing research activities, utilising staff in coope- ration with postgraduate nursing and faculty nursing. 4.Provide a framework for the evaluation of the quality of nursing care. The mission statement tells the reason for the existence of nursing division in relation to nursing practice and of self- care as defined by the nursing staff. Definition of nursing and self-care may be quoted in the mission statement. The mission statement of nursing division supports the mission of the organisation. The statement indicates that the nursing division exists to provide a public good. The mission is developed by the people who will live by it. It includes a set of core values held by those people. The mission is short, clear, and unambiguous; it has a clear meaning.