Developing an Elective on Spirituality for the BSN Curriculum

Area of Science:

• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Spirituality
• Curriculum Development

Background:

• Curriculum evaluation of a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program identified a gap in content related to spirituality and spiritual assessment.
• Nurses play a crucial role in providing spiritual care, necessitating adequate training in spiritual assessment techniques.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and implement an elective course addressing the identified content gap in spiritual care and assessment within a BSN program.
• To equip nursing students with the knowledge and skills to provide spiritual care and conduct spiritual assessments.

Main Methods:

• A 300-level elective course was designed with a hybrid format.
• The course content focused on the nurse's role in spiritual care and patient spiritual assessment.
• The course was implemented within a public university's BSN program.

Main Results:

• The newly developed elective course received positive evaluations from students upon implementation.
• The hybrid course design was found to be effective and well-received by the student cohort.

Conclusions:

• The elective course successfully addressed the identified curriculum gap regarding spiritual care and assessment.
• Integrating spiritual care education into nursing curricula is vital for comprehensive patient care.
• The positive student feedback suggests the course effectively met its educational objectives.