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The European experience of cancer nursing: curriculum development and dissemination
Author(s) -
EVERS G. C. M.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
european journal of cancer care
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1365-2354
pISSN - 0961-5423
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2354.1993.tb00155.x
Subject(s) - medicine , curriculum , standardization , nursing , diversity (politics) , competence (human resources) , nurse education , core competency , medical education , pedagogy , psychology , sociology , political science , social psychology , marketing , anthropology , law , business
Nurses' contribution to overall health care differs greatly across European Community (EC) Member States. There is great diversity of labour, delineation of responsibilities, tasks and competencies of nurses in general and cancer nurses in particular. One of the objectives of the EC Action Program against cancer was to improve competence of health professionals, including nurses, by training. For that reason a core curriculum for cancer nursing has been developed. Both developmental and dissemination issues are addressed in this article. It is concluded that the reality of European diversity has been successfully addressed in this core curriculum. Furthermore, it has been the first attempt to improve the quality of nursing education in Europe not by standardization of procedures and formal requirements, but on nursing content and consensus of experts. The risks of isolated efforts of nurses in curriculum development have been avoided. The purpose and content of the curriculum clearly reflect societal needs which were identified and acknowledged in public through the Europe Against Cancer Program.