The art of knowing: Designing a nursing professional development program based on American nurses’ experiences of providing care to Arab Muslims

Objective and methods: The purpose of this project was to gain insight into American nurses’ experiences of providing care to Arab Muslims in order to design a nursing professional development program that supports the provision of culturally congruent care to Arab Muslims. Empirical, personal, ethical, and aesthetic ways of knowing were used to generate a comprehensive view of how American nurses describe their experiences of providing care to Arab Muslims.Results: Prevailing themes included culture care knowledge, modesty, gender-specific considerations, privacy and dignity, cleanliness, worship rites, and the concept of In Shallah. Not having enough time was a significant factor influencing nurses’ intentions to provide culturally congruent care. Nurses also shared that it was less important to meet the culture care needs of acutely or critically ill patients.Conclusions: The themes underscored the value of including empirical, personal, ethical, and aesthetic knowledge in the design of a nursing professional development programs in the United States and globally.