Complementary and alternative medicine: core competencies for family nurse practitioners

Recent surveys demonstrate substantial use of complementary and alternative medicine. This growth presents a challenge for family nurse practitioner programs that already have dense curricula due to the explosion of biomedical knowledge. Significant barriers exist to incorporating complementary and alternative medicine into educational programs, such as differing philosophies about health and lack of research on many complementary and alternative medicine therapies. This study used a mailed questionnaire in which family nurse practitioner program directors described the current status of complementary and alternative medicine teaching in family nurse practitioner programs and identified core competencies for family nurse practitioners. Most programs reported integrating some content on complementary and alternative medicine into advanced practice courses, such as health promotion. Competencies related to interviewing, critical thinking, evidence-based medicine, knowledge of laws, ethics, and spiritual and cultural beliefs were rated the highest. The findings are useful in helping family nurse practitioner faculty incorporate complementary and alternative medicine content into their curricula with the goal of preparing family nurse practitioners for safe practice.