Global standards for professional nursing education: The time is now

A well-educated, professional nursing workforce is essential to good health care outcomes. Although nursing education is being strengthened globally, considerable diversity persists in the level and standards of nursing education both within and across countries. An international framework of guidelines for nursing education has, therefore, been developed to promote greater international consistency and high-quality nursing education globally. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the multinational methodology used to develop a global framework for professional nursing education and the policy implications of this framework in guiding the harmonization of nursing education demanded by the State of the World's Nursing 2020 (WHO, 2020a) call to action. The framework includes the underpinning assumption that nurses be prepared at the baccalaureate level and three pillars of global expectations targeting: a) learning outcomes for graduating preservice nursing students; b) standards for nursing programs, and c) standards for educational institutions delivering nursing programs. The Global Pillars Framework reflects international best practices, but the guidelines are adaptable across socio-cultural contexts facilitating the integration of locally relevant education. As 2020 has been declared the Year of the Nurse and Midwife globally, the ground has been laid for the next evolution in the education of the nursing workforce globally.

Automated summary

A well-educated, professional nursing workforce is crucial for good health care outcomes, and international guidelines for nursing education have been developed to promote greater consistency and quality globally. This paper discusses the multinational methodology used to develop a global framework for professional nursing education and the policy implications of this in guiding the harmonization of nursing education. The framework includes the assumption that nurses should be prepared at the baccalaureate level and three pillars targeting learning outcomes, standards for nursing programs, and standards for educational institutions.