The first major objective of a bachelor's degree in nursing is training in the scientific and medical theory underpinning medicine. Nursing programs include classes on anatomy, physiology, pharmacology and chemistry. These courses are essential to a nurse's skill as a medical practitioner, because they give him the ability to evaluate clinical situations independently.
Nursing programs also aim to educate students so that they are can function proficiently in a hospital or clinic. These skills are taught both through courses on the role of the hospital nurse and through practice in a clinical setting. These objectives train nursing students to communicate and work effectively with doctors, orderlies and other medical staff. Specific focuses in nursing programs include classes on leadership and management, and communication in a health care environment.
Nurses are often the human face that medical institutions show to their patients, and they must communicate with patients effectively. This skill is important both to increase patients' comfort and to develop effective methods of treating individuals. Nursing programs provide courses covering the care of children, seniors, families and other types of patients, to enable students to develop medical strategies in collaboration with their patients. Being able to respond properly to patient needs is another aspect that is developed through clinical training.
Many nursing programs also seek to educate nurses about operating in a larger social environment, taking the demographics of their community into account during their practice. Nursing students are expected to develop a respect for diversity, as well as the ability to determine proper courses of treatment and collaboration based on cultural and economic factors. Because of this, some nursing programs often require or recommend studies in philosophy or sociology to complement their medical training.