Answer to Question 1
A
The lack of diversity in the educational experience of health care professionals and in the workforce has been linked to issues of quality and patient safety. Misunderstandings can arise from both language and different cultural values. Having a diverse population of nurses decreases the chances of this happening, which in turn improves patient safety.
Although it is true that more diversity in the nursing field may increase minority trust in nurses, this is not the most compelling reason for improving diversity. Patient safety comes first.
It is true that increased diversity provides more opportunities for nurses to improve their competence; however, this is not the most compelling reason for improving diversity. Patient safety is more important.
The goal of increased diversity in nursing is not simply to achieve a health care population that mirrors the general population; the driving reason is to increase cultural competency when working with patients from diverse backgrounds and improve safety and outcomes.
Answer to Question 2
C
Nightingale viewed nursing as an art and, as such, the various roles in nursing as multilayered and fluid defined by the context and demands of the environment in which that nurse works. Although care activities were often driven by experience (tried and true) and there was little scientific knowledge on which to base nursing actions, these are not the main reason for the use of the term art. Patient preference has just begun to be incorporated into evidence based practice.