Abstract
Introduction/Background
As the largest healthcare workforce, nurses and midwives require a deep understanding of planetary health to address current and future global health challenges. However, existing research highlights potential lack of knowledge, skills and confidence among health professions educators in effectively teaching planetary health (Brand et al., 2021). This study investigates the current planetary health knowledge, perspectives, confidence, and teaching practices of nursing and midwifery educators in Australia and New Zealand.
Methods
An online cross-sectional survey was sent to Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators across the 45 Schools of Nursing and Midwifery between July and September 2023. The online survey consisted of 29 open- and closed-ended questions about nursing and midwifery educators’ planetary health knowledge, views, confidence and teaching practices.
Results/Evaluation
A total of 127 participants responded to the first open-ended question. Thereafter, 97 participants proceeded to complete the rest of the survey questions. The data suggests that while nursing and midwifery educators held mostly positive views about
integrating planetary health into their teaching, they lacked the knowledge and/or confidence to do so effectively.
Discussion
Our results align with prior research indicating that many health professions educators have limited knowledge and confidence to teach planetary health (Brand et al., 2021) . While our study reveals overwhelmingly positive attitudes of nursing and midwifery educators towards integrating planetary health into their teaching, there is a recognized gap in knowledge and confidence, attributed to the complexity of the subject and the recent availability of frameworks for guidance. To address this, the
focus should be on formulating a professional development strategy for nursing and midwifery educators, enabling them to incorporate a planetary health perspective into their current and future teaching practices.
As the largest healthcare workforce, nurses and midwives require a deep understanding of planetary health to address current and future global health challenges. However, existing research highlights potential lack of knowledge, skills and confidence among health professions educators in effectively teaching planetary health (Brand et al., 2021). This study investigates the current planetary health knowledge, perspectives, confidence, and teaching practices of nursing and midwifery educators in Australia and New Zealand.
Methods
An online cross-sectional survey was sent to Australian and New Zealand nursing and midwifery educators across the 45 Schools of Nursing and Midwifery between July and September 2023. The online survey consisted of 29 open- and closed-ended questions about nursing and midwifery educators’ planetary health knowledge, views, confidence and teaching practices.
Results/Evaluation
A total of 127 participants responded to the first open-ended question. Thereafter, 97 participants proceeded to complete the rest of the survey questions. The data suggests that while nursing and midwifery educators held mostly positive views about
integrating planetary health into their teaching, they lacked the knowledge and/or confidence to do so effectively.
Discussion
Our results align with prior research indicating that many health professions educators have limited knowledge and confidence to teach planetary health (Brand et al., 2021) . While our study reveals overwhelmingly positive attitudes of nursing and midwifery educators towards integrating planetary health into their teaching, there is a recognized gap in knowledge and confidence, attributed to the complexity of the subject and the recent availability of frameworks for guidance. To address this, the
focus should be on formulating a professional development strategy for nursing and midwifery educators, enabling them to incorporate a planetary health perspective into their current and future teaching practices.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages | 162 |
| Number of pages | 1 |
| Publication status | Published - 2024 |
| Event | Australian & New Zealand Association for Health Professional Educators Conference 2024 - Adelaide Convention Centre, Adelaide, Australia Duration: 1 Jul 2024 → 4 Jul 2024 https://eventstudio.eventsair.com/anzahpe-2024/ https://eventstudio.eventsair.com/anzahpe-2024/abstract-book (Abstract Book) |
Conference
| Conference | Australian & New Zealand Association for Health Professional Educators Conference 2024 |
|---|---|
| Abbreviated title | ANZAHPE 2024 |
| Country/Territory | Australia |
| City | Adelaide |
| Period | 1/07/24 → 4/07/24 |
| Internet address |
Keywords
- climate change
- education
- Planetary health
- nursing
