Anatomy in the Nursing Curriculum: A Comparison of Teaching Approaches

Abstract

Since its inception in 1959, the Faculty of Nursing at the University of New Brunswick has based its program on an integrated curriculum model. Curriculum threads such as anatomy, pharmacology and nutrition were included with appropriate nursing content throughout the program. Over the years, faculty members readily accepted the premise that knowledge could be better stored and utilized if it were related to and presented with its "mother content". However, as several hundred students graduated over the subsequent two decades, they frequently expressed concern that their knowledge of anatomy was inadequate. Faculty members' review of this situation raised further questions. Was this phenomenon due to the students' lack of study and review? Did faculty members expect students to acquire anatomy knowledge on their own? Was the integrated curriculum merely another untested "bandwagon"? Does blocked content provide a better basis in certain content areas? Anxious to rectify any curriculum inadequacies, but also to be cautious in making curriculum decisions based on fact rather than fancy, faculty members implemented the following plans.