Introducing iCare Compassionately: A Compassionate Care Model for Nursing Education

Background and Purpose: A need exists for a compassionate care model created for nursing education, with strategies that faculty can use for teaching students about compassionate care. Methods: A compassionate care model grounded in multidisciplinary theories and operationalized definitions was created for nursing academia. Results: The iCare Compassionately model was developed, and associated concepts were interwoven into organizational culture, first for faculty and staff as foundational content to facilitate role modeling opportunities. The model was then integrated comprehensively into the nursing curriculum. Implications for Practice: Through a care model developed specifically for nursing education, organizational culture can provide examples for nursing students of compassionate care. Further, by integrating compassionate care concepts throughout a curriculum, students receive focused education, resulting in new nurses being better equipped to deliver compassionate and clinically competent care to patients, as well as practice self-compassion to promote better nurse well-being.