The Necessity for Specialty Education in Nursing MS Program: Viewpoints of the Faculty Members of School of Nursing and Midwifery in Iran

Introduction: Academic specialty nursing courses are so limited in our country, being available just in a few schools. This study was performed in order to determine the necessity for having specialty education programs in MS level and the type of educational program needed. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed through year 2008 in schools of nursing and midwifery of the country. The study population was faculty members of the schools of nursing and midwifery who were selected clustery and randomly (n=300). A questionnaire was sent to schools of nursing and midwifery. Nursing faculty members were asked to send the completed questionnaires back to nursing organization. Data was analyzed by SPSS software using Chi². Results: 76.6% of participants believed that graduates of nursing MS are not efficient in clinical settings. 92.7% stated that presenting specialty clinical courses is necessary in MS level. From these persons' viewpoints, the reasons for establishing these specialized courses are prioritized as follows: promotion of service quality, the increasing requirement of society for specialized function of medical professions, establi-shing a desirable occupational position for nurses, and reducing the expenses of health services. Conclusion: MS graduates are not efficient enough in clinical settings, so it calls for making some revisions in educational courses of MS level. It is recommended to conduct more comprehensive researches on this area considering evaluation of educational programs.