Promoting a culture of curiosity within nursing practice

The professional status of nursing requires that nurses have access to and can understand a knowledge base at the correct academic level. Over the last 15 years there has been an explosion in the amount of best practice evidence available to nurses. There has also been an increasing emphasis on independent life-long learning and an expectation that nurses should be able to teach themselves. This article argues that a culture of curiosity is a key requirement of these demands. It examines the origins and nature of curiosity and proposes teaching techniques that can be used in higher education institutions and in clinical practice to promote a culture of curiosity in nursing.