QSEN Quality And Safety Education For Nurses By: Shelby Birchmeier, Ashley Gran, Sharon Mumah, and Chelsea Kaye

WHAT IS QSEN “The Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) project addresses the challenge of preparing future nurses with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs) necessary to continuously improve the quality and safety of the healthcare systems within which they work” QSEN Institute. (2013). About QSEN. Retrieved from

WHAT IS QSEN? Focuses on pre-licensure nurses and nurses in entry level roles Assures and measures quality and efficiency on hospital outcomes (listed on following slide)

QSEN INITIATIVES 1. “Defined quality and safety competencies for nursing and proposed targets for the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to be developed in nursing pre-licensure programs for each competency:  patient-centered care  teamwork, and collaboration  evidence based practice  quality improvement  safety  informatics” QSEN Institute. (2013). About QSEN. Retrieved from

QSEN INITIATIVES CONTINUED… 2. “Completed a national survey of baccalaureate program leaders and a state survey of associate degree educators to assess beliefs about the extent to which the competencies are included in current curricula, the level of satisfaction with the student competency achievement, and the level of the facility expertise in teaching the competencies.” QSEN Institute. (2013). About QSEN. Retrieved from

QSEN INITIATIVES CONTINUED… 3. “Partnered with representatives of organizations that represents advanced practice nurses and drafted proposed knowledge, skills, and attitude targets for graduate education. 4. Funded work with 15 pilot schools to active engagement in curricular change to incorporate quality and safety competencies.” QSEN Institute. (2013). About QSEN. Retr ieve d from

WHO CREATED QSEN? When QSEN first started it was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The total funding for this project was $5,934,477. The largest part of funding went to the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill to “evaluate and enhance nursing school curricula on the topics of quality and safety.” (Ironside, para 1). The rest of the funding went to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)during the third phase of the QSEN project.

WHO CREATED QSEN? Linda Cronenwett, PhD, FAAN, Dean of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing, was the QSEN project’s Principal Investigator during the first and second phases of the project. During the third part of the project “Dr. Cronenwett continued to be the Principal Investigator of the project and is leading Phase III with Geraldine P. Bednash, PhD, RN, FAAN, Executive Director of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing,” (QSEN institute, para 6).

WHY WAS QSEN CREATED? We have a very intricate healthcare system in the United States. It is imperative for nurses to keep up with the most recent information as it pertains to their practice through education. Before QSEN was created, a report done by the Institute of Medicine supported the importance of nurses staying timely with the changes of our health care system. This Health Professions Education Report demonstrated a need for changes in our nursing curriculum nationally (Lisewski, 2011).

COMPETENCIES Six core competences were created to be incorporated into nursing curriculum. Included are: 1.Patient-centered care 2.Teamwork and collaboration 3.Evidence-based practice 4.Quality improvement 5.Safety 6.Informatics These competencies lay the foundation for quality nursing education and guide us as practicing nurses (Lisewski, 2011).

HOW LONG HAS QSEN BEEN AROUND In October of 2005 the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) gave the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing a grant to “evaluate and enhance nursing school curricula on the topics of quality and safety.” (Ironside, para 1) Four phases were then carried out: Phase I (10/05 – 3/07): The six QSEN competencies were developed. Phase II (4/07 – 10/08): Test and teaching strategies were developed and disseminated to 15 pilot schools.

HOW LONG HAS QSEN BEEN AROUND Phase III (11/08 – 2/12): Goals Promote continued innovation in the development and evaluation of methods to elicit and assess student learning of the KSA’s for the six IOM/QSEN competencies and the widespread sharing of those innovations and develop the faculty expertise necessary to assist the learning and assessment of achievement of quality and safety competencies in all types of pre-licensure nursing programs (Barnsteiner et al.., 2012, p.69).

HOW LONG HAS QSEN BEEN AROUND Phase IV (3/12 – Current): The Tri-Council of Nursing was developed which is comprised of the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, National League for Nursing, American Nurses Association, and the American Organization of Nurse Executives(AONE). The initiatives are to create a “more highly educated nursing workforce.” (Ironside, para 5). This coincides with the Institute of Medicine (IOM) 2010 report promoting BSN prepared nurses.

FSU AND QSEN We found on Ferris State University’s website the MSN program has a new curriculum that incorporates QSEN’s competencies. Ferris State University states: We are pleased to have a new curriculum beginning fall of The new curriculum has incorporated the Institute of Medicine’s and Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competencies. Our new curriculum also aligns with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing Essentials of Master’s Education. (Ferris State, 2013)

KSA Knowledge, Skills, and Attitude (KSA) Schools could use the KSAs as a template to recognize gaps in the curriculum from current to what was desired in the future to adhere to QSEN initiative (Barnsteiner et al.., 2012, p. 69). Schools are noting QSEN competencies and KSAs “into the job descriptions and performance appraisals of nurses in practice” (Bednash, 2013, p. 67).

TRAINING In 2010 and 2011 sessions were held to educate nursing faculty on QSEN and how to incorporate into their curriculum. They were given resources to prepare their co- workers and students on safe high-quality patient care (Barnsteiner et al.., 2012, p. 69).

QSEN IMPACT FOR ASHLEY GRAN I guess I never knew about QSEN before this assignment, but quality and safety has always been a big part of my nursing practice. On the floor where I work, safety is a huge part of my care. We put bed checks on every single patient that is a fall risk, and run to them when they are set off to ensure our patients are safe. On my floor we also look at survey scores which reflect the patient’s views on the quality of their stay.

QSEN IMPACT FOR SHARON MUMAH In my current practice area of Hospice I inquired to supervisors and regional directors on the impact of QSEN in our agency and discovered these individuals had no knowledge of QSEN. The agency has a Quality Assurance Performance Improvement (QAPI) team that meets quarterly and from those meetings Performance Improvement Projects (PIP) are determined based on areas where deficits are noted, including quality and safety. Prior to this assignment I also was not aware of QSEN and the role it plays in health care. The impact I see in the future is with those nurses employed who have been educated at an institution that follow the competencies from QSEN. What I will gain is a continued focus on the importance of quality and safety for greater patient care.

QSEN IMPACT FOR CHELSEA KAYE As a brand new preceptor for new graduates beginning on our unit, this is great timing for me to learn about QSEN. It is important that I understand each competency so I can pass that knowledge along to new nurses so they have a solid foundation of providing quality and safe care. Even though my knowledge of QSEN did not previously extend beyond knowing the term, as I think about my practice as a nurse I am demonstrating these competencies into my practice everyday. Providing safe and exceptional care to my patients is important to me. On such a busy unit working as a team and staying up to date on the most current research is imperative for providing care I can be proud of.

QSEN IMPACT FOR SHELBY BIRCHMEIER Honestly, before this assignment I have never heard about QSEN; although, I feel the college I attended and institution I work at have done a great job providing me with quality and safety education and expectations. Ethics, using evidence based practice, and following protocols and core measures are a few ways I incorporate QSEN. Also, safety is extremely important for the patients and with my medical care. At work, we have access to a program called Up To Date where one can search any topic in the medical field and the database will give many articles on evidence based practice and current research on the topic.

REFERENCES Barnsteiner, J., Disch, J., Johnson, J., McGuin, K., Chappell, K., Swartwout, E. (2012). Diffusing QSEN Competencies Across Schools of Nursing: The AACN/RWJF Faculty Development Institutes. Journal of Professional Nursing, 29, Retrieved from Bednash, G., Cronnenwett, L., Dolansky, M., (2013). QSEN Transforming Education. Journal of Professional Nursing, 29, Retrieved from Ferris State University, MSN Program-School of Nursing. (2013). Ironside, P.M. Exploring the Complexity of Advocacy: Balancing Patient-Centered Care and Safety. (n.d.).Retrieved Nov 26 from Lisewski, D. (2011). Partners in nursing education. Advanced healthcare network for nurses. Retrieved from Education.aspx QSEN Institute. (2013). About QSEN: Project Overview. Retrieved from: