Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators' planetary health knowledge, views, confidence and teaching practices: A descriptive survey study
Publication Name
Journal of Advanced Nursing
Abstract
Aim: To explore Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators' planetary health knowledge, views, confidence and teaching practices. Design: A cross-sectional survey design. Methods: An online survey was sent to Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators across the 45 Schools of Nursing and Midwifery between July and September 2023. The online survey consisted of 29 open- and closed-ended questions about nursing and midwifery educators' planetary health knowledge, views, confidence and teaching practices. Results: There was a total of 127 responses to the first open-ended question. A total of 97 nursing and midwifery educators then completed the remaining questions. While educators had mostly positive views about integrating planetary health into their teaching, they lacked the knowledge and/or confidence to do so effectively. Conclusion: Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators acknowledge that planetary health should be included in nursing and midwifery curricula, but most reported a deficit in knowledge and/or confidence to integrate these complex concepts into their teaching. When considering planetary health, most educators focussed on climate change, which demonstrates their limited understanding of the concept of planetary health. Implications for the Profession: All nurses and midwives need to understand how the health of the planet and human civilization are interconnected and be prepared to address complex global health challenges now and in the future. Across the world, key healthcare organizations have called upon nursing and midwifery educators to prepare the healthcare workforce to practice in a more sustainable way, including supporting decarbonization of healthcare. However, our study has demonstrated that nursing and midwifery educators do not feel ready to respond due to a lack of required knowledge and/or confidence. Reporting Method: We used the Consensus-Based Checklist for Reporting of Survey Studies (CROSS). Patient or Public Contribution: No patient or public contribution.
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