Designing a New Nursing Curriculum the Process and the Pitfalls

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Designing a New Nursing Curriculum the Process
and the Pitfalls

• October 9, 2006

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It all starts with your

• Philosophy
• Identify major concepts that will be threaded
  throughout courses
• Examples
• Evidence-based practice
• Informatics/Communication
• Interdisciplinary teams
• Quality improvement
• Patient-centered care

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The Second Step is

• Organizing framework
• Examples
• NLN Competencies Provider of care, manager of
  care, member of the discipline
• NCSBN Core Competencies Professional behaviors,
  Communication, Assessment, Clinical Decision
  Making, Caring Interventions, Teaching and
  Learning, Collaboration, Managing Care
• NCLEX Test Plan Safe, Effective Care
  Environment, Health Promotion and Maintenance,
  Psychosocial Integrity, Physiological Integrity.
• Functional Health Patterns
• Systems

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The next step is

• Educational Outcomes or Terminal Objectives
• This is what you want your graduate to look like
  or be able to do when they graduate
• They will be broad statements that relate back to
  the major concepts identified in the philosophy

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Next Come

• Level objectives or course objectives
• Determine the number of levels for your program
• These must demonstrate progression.
• They also provide the framework for the clinical
  evaluation tool.
• The objectives for the final course are the same
  as the educational outcomes or terminal objectives

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After objectives

• Determine the content for each course
• The major concepts identified in philosophy are
  deepened throughout the program
• The organizing framework provides the structure
  for the content
• It is impossible to cover everything the
  challenge is to identify the concepts that are
  critical

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Design Learning Activities and Methods of
Assessment

• Facilitate active student investigation,
  discovery, and learning of essential material
• Faculty do not need to feel responsible for
  covering all of the material
• All assessments should reflect the depth and
  breath of content described in course objectives.

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Why do we need a curriculum revision?

• Integrated and Non-integrated curriculum
  restricted transferability
• Ensure seamless articulation among NCCCS
  institutions
• Keep current with national trends and reflect
  contemporary nursing practice

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Factors/trends Influencing Nursing Education

• Regulatory changes set by NC BON
• Recommendations cited in 2004 report of the NC
  IOM Task Force on Nursing Workforce including the
  need to meet NLNAC accreditation standards
• Elimination of summer funding

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How did it get started?

• NC Council of ADN Directors appointed a task
  force

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Begin with the end in mind

• Used NLN competencies as organizing framework
• Three level objectives were developed for each
  competency
• Professional Behaviors
• Communication
• Assessment
• Clinical Decision Making
• Caring Interventions
• Teaching and Learning
• Collaboration
• Managing Care

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Course Development

• 12 courses
• Separate courses for pharmacology, assessment and
  leadership
• Geriatrics is integrated
• Professional Nursing Concepts and Assessment must
  be offered in the first semester and Nursing Care
  of Multi-system failure must be in the last,
  otherwise, courses may be offered in any sequence
• Can be offered in shorter blocks or over the
  entire semester

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Issues

• Why argue with present success?
• How will there be time for more content?
• What will we give up?
• What if we dont teach the right things?
• What if NCLEX rates go down?
• What if skill levels decline?
• What if we cannot teach the new content
  effectively?
• How will this impact my teaching load?

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Curriculum change requires

• Courage the willingness to take risks in order
  to achieve a goal
• Trust in each other and the process
• Strong commitment by faculty leaders
• Communication and collaboration with each other
  and key stakeholders
• Ability to balance the need for change with the
  instinct to protect what has been