NURSING CURRICULA AND VIOLENCE ISSUES

This article presents the findings of a survey of Canadian schools of nursing (N = 155) that determined the extent to which violence-related content is addressed in nursing curricula. The study yielded a respon se rate of 88%. Theoretical content regarding violence against childre n and women of all ages, and suicide as a response to abuse formed par t of the curriculum of all schools of nursing, if only in readings. Ch ild abuse and suicide received the greatest number of hours of instruc tion, followed by woman abuse, sexual assault, and elder abuse. Univer sity schools of nursing provided the greatest number of hours of instr uction when compared with other types of schools. Schools in Western a nd Atlantic Canada provided the greatest number of hours of instructio n on woman abuse when compared with other regions of the country. The majority of university schools provided experiential instruction in th e area of violence, with the other types of schools providing very lit tle such instruction. Findings revealed a sensitivity to the importanc e of including content on violence in nursing curricula; however, the approach to this content is largely incidental and heavily dependent o n individual faculty interests. Implications of this study point to th e need for the systematic inclusion of violence-related content and th e sharing of resources among schools of nursing.