Improving the community nursing experiences of nursing students

Abstract

Community nursing is necessary to the overall health of populations and presents nursing students with unique opportunities to care for entire communities. In addition, it is important for nursing students to develop culturally competent skills to care for a global community, regardless of their geographic location during school or in practice. Limited in nursing practices and skills, first year nursing students are often resigned to assist with health screenings during clinical experiences which do not accurately represent the community nurse profession. The aim of this study was to evaluate the experiences of nursing students in a 7 week course designed to develop community nursing and cultural competence among junior and senior nursing students. It seems community-based clinical hours are more valuable to students when completed in one community rather than a short series of clinical hours in various communities and when placed later in the curriculum. Additionally, selecting culturally diverse communities can also provide students with opportunities to develop cultural competence.