Examining Student Preparation for Advancing Care in a Diverse Society.

BACKGROUND: Although many nursing programs include health equity in their curriculum, research investigating the efficacy of such curricula often is lacking. METHOD: Using criterion sampling, school of nursing alumni who could speak about their graduate preparation and current experiences working with diverse patient populations were recruited for this study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 22 alumni regarding their curricular, clinical, and co-curricular experiences as graduate students to better understand the strengths and gaps in their preparation as health professionals. RESULTS: Four major themes emerged from the analysis of interview transcripts (n = 22). These themes included: (1) diversity and representation; (2) implicit bias and microaggressions; (3) skills and knowledge areas; and (4) supplemental learning through co-curricular experiences. CONCLUSION: Implications for policy, curriculum innovation, and clinical practice can better prepare students to advance care for a diverse society. [J Nurs Educ. 2024;63(4):228-232.].

Structural Racism Hurts All Nurses.

Why health care must be reenvisioned through a DEI lens.

Laying down the knife may decrease risk of HIV transmission: cultural practices in Cameroon with implications for public health and policy.

The risk of HIV transmission may be increased by certain cultural practices. In Cameroon, these practices include group circumcision of boys using unsterile knives during rites of passage, skin cutting or tribal markings, group breast feeding practices and nose shaving rituals. Since traditional healers and circumcisers have a vital role in these practices at the village level, their collaboration is needed by government and biomedical communities to engage in health education and prevention efforts to stem HIV incidence and prevalence. Such efforts should include comprehensive education on HIV counseling, testing, condom use and male circumcision in health centers, clinics and hospitals. As more people emigrate to the U.S. from sub-Saharan countries where such cultural practices (including female circumcision) are endemic, health care providers need to identify and follow up potential health problems of these immigrants.

Laying down the knife may decrease risk of HIV transmission: cultural practices in Cameroon with implications for public health and policy.

The risk of HIV transmission may be increased by certain cultural practices. In Cameroon, these practices include group circumcision of boys using unsterile knives during rites of passage, skin cutting or tribal markings, group breast feeding practices and nose shaving rituals. Since traditional healers and circumcisers have a vital role in these practices at the village level, their collaboration is needed by government and biomedical communities to engage in health education and prevention efforts to stem HIV incidence and prevalence. Such efforts should include comprehensive education on HIV counseling, testing, condom use and male circumcision in health centers, clinics and hospitals. As more people emigrate to the U.S. from sub-Saharan countries where such cultural practices (including female circumcision) are endemic, health care providers need to identify and follow up potential health problems of these immigrants.

Development and Psychometric Testing of a Measure to Evaluate Faculty Engagement With Underrepresented Minority Nursing Students.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to develop a reliable and valid measure of faculty response patterns to the needs of underrepresented minority (URM) nursing students. METHODS: A mixed-method approach. RESULTS: The 10-item scale was found to be valid (content validity index [CVI] = .81) and reliable (Cronbach's alpha = .81). Principle component factor analysis with varimax rotation yielded a 3-factor solution that explained 66% of the variance in faculty engagement with URM students. The Cronbach's alpha for the 3 factors ranged from .72 to .78. Higher scores were associated with older faculty who had been teaching longer and had more experience teaching URM students. CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS: The results of the study provide preliminary evidence for the internal consistency and content, criterion-related, and construct validity of the scale.

Use of Simulation to Integrate Cultural Humility Into Advanced Health Assessment for Nurse Practitioner Students.

BACKGROUND: Increasing cultural humility among nursing students requires the application of knowledge and skills. The integration of an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) offered nurse practitioner students practice in simulation. METHOD: This learning activity included pre- and postassessments of knowledge regarding cultural issues and level of student satisfaction. Course content included an exemplar video and a simulation interview with an African American standardized patient. RESULTS: Of the 65 students enrolled, 97% completed OSCE interviews and 81% completed pre- and postsurveys. A 2-domain 3 × 2-time within-subjects ANOVA indicated a statistically significant interaction effect, reinforced by descriptive statistics. Follow-up paired t tests detected a significantly large knowledge increase. Standardized patient scenarios scored highest for satisfaction, followed by critical thinking, and with self-confidence scoring lowest. CONCLUSION: The favorable knowledge outcomes from this teaching intervention support future applications of OSCE methodology for teaching sensitive cross-cultural content. [J Nurs Educ. 2017;56(9):567-571.].

Teaching with the Nightingale Tracker technology in community-based nursing education: a pilot study.

Changes in health care delivery are becoming increasingly focused on technology. Nursing students are often expected to travel long distances to suitable community sites for clinical experiences, which challenges nurse educators to design and implement instructional strategies to provide students with optimal clinical practice opportunities, while maintaining preceptor-student supervision and vital communication links. This article reports a pilot evaluation of the Nightingale Tracker system, which included both a server and an innovative, hand-held device designed to accommodate multiple forms of data input and allow timely communication between clinical faculty and students in community-based clinical settings. A sample of 5 nursing students reported that the Nightingale Tracker enhanced learning, particularly in performing and documenting physical assessments, data input and transmissions, and autonomous clinical practice.

Enhancing cultural competencies of advanced practice nurses: health care challenges in the twenty-first century.

Shifting population demographics will have a major impact on the practice of advanced practice nurses (APNs). The ethnic composition of people in this country is becoming increasingly diverse. Massachusetts and, in particular, the city of Worcester is also experiencing changes in the diversity of its population. These trends testify to the great need for APNs who are sensitive to and competent to care for culturally diverse populations. To address these changes, specific curricula enhancements focused on ethnically diverse populations were implemented for the nurse practitioner specialties at the Graduate School of Nursing (GSN), University of Massachusetts Worcester. The processes used for this project included visiting community and clinical sites, identifying key curricular components, and evaluating existing didactic and clinical learning experiences. The GSN faculty developed a systematic plan for integrating these components into the graduate nursing core, advanced practice core, and specialty courses of the respective curricula. A major outcome of this project was the enhanced preparation of APN students to meet the multifaceted needs of ethnically diverse patients, families, and communities.