Family Nursing

Biography

Biography: Jennifer S Hurlbert

Abstract

During the infancy of professional nursing, Florence Nightingale acknowledged in the Notes on Nursing that ignorance of medicinal properties could cause adverse outcomes. In 1919, the National League of Nursing Educators recommended that pharmacology be a part of the standard nursing curriculum. Contemporary nurses need thorough pharmacology knowledge for clinical practice to ensure public safety. Therefore, it is important to discover a teaching methodology in nursing education to enhance retention of pharmacology knowledge. A retrospective, causal, comparative quantitative study was conducted: to determine whether there was a difference in mastery of pharmacology knowledge between students in a separate pharmacology course and those for whom pharmacology concepts were integrated into other nursing courses, and; to determine if there was a difference or relationship between mastery of pharmacology knowledge of ADN graduates and their age, gender, or previous direct healthcare experience. Mastery of concepts was measured by Assessment Technologies Institutes Registered Nurses Comprehensive Predictor Pharmacological and Parenteral Therapies section scores. The results of the research demonstrate that teaching pharmacology, as a separate course as opposed to integrated pharmacologic didactic content did not increase students’ pharmacology scores. The performance scores of the ADN graduates on the Pharmacological section were comparable within and between variables. Educators should focus on delivering the pharmacologic content to all students equally. Finding an effective method of teaching pharmacology that enhances retention for clinical application can reduce medication errors. A graduate that experiences enhanced pharmacology retention for application through effective teaching methodology can benefit the public.