Introduction of a Pedagogical Activity Designed to Prepare the Next Generation of Nurses for Ongoing Climate Change

Abstract

Introduction: Climate change is considered one of the top threats of the 21st century to population health. The consequences are many, touching physical environments as well as all natural and human systems. Nurses play a key role in the evaluation and care of persons affected by climate change. Numerous professional associations, including the Ordre des infirmières et infirmiers du Québec (OIIQ), recommend enhancing the competencies of nurses to prepare them to deal with climate change. Despite these recommendations, university curricula are still not adequately preparing the next generation of nurses in this regard.

Pedagogical Innovation and Context: A Quebec university school of nursing introduced a pedagogical innovation to empower future nurses to intervene with the population within a context of climate change. This innovation, based on theoretical foundations critical to the nursing discipline and developed with an interdisciplinary lens, includes two elements: an independent theoretical module and an interprofessional simulation designed for a broad audience. The theoretical module seeks to develop a greater understanding of the principles of public health emergencies, various relevant services (prevention, preparation, recovery, etc.), and interdisciplinary collaboration. The simulation, in turn, constitutes an opportunity to participate in a public health emergency intervention alongside students enrolled in the pre-med program.

Results: After having completed the theoretical module, 23 students from two programs (baccalaureate in nursing and pre-med) took part in the interdisciplinary simulation. They deemed the pedagogical activity highly relevant and stated that they were satisfied that the targeted learning objectives were achieved.

Discussion: The activity’s success was due to several elements, including its foundation in community practice and the inclusion of interprofessional program collaboration. The implementation, however, was challenging in a few areas, primarily regarding the recruitment of students. Participation was notably voluntary, as the activity was not included in the curriculum. These obstacles should be considered when holding such an activity.

Conclusion: Climate change is an imminent menace. Nurses are called upon to play a key role, given that their practice already entails intervening with the populations affected by climate change. This pedagogical innovation shows that it is possible to improve university curricula by adding activities that will adequately prepare the next generation of nurses to meet the growing and changing needs of the population.