'Disability' in a Nursing Curriculum

Abstract

Disabled people report dissatisfaction with their contact with health professionals and their educational systems. This paper reports on a study into disability within a curriculum leading to initial professional nursing qualification. The 'case study' design involved collecting data from the curriculum document, from students via questionnaire, and a total of 16 semi-structured interviews with both students and teachers involved in delivering the curriculum. Disability appeared as the inequality of inequalities in the planning and delivery of this curriculum. Simulation was employed to teach about disability, yet there was little confidence that students emerged with the necessary skills to deal with a disabled person who happens to become a patient. There was some indication that nurses may be ready to adopt a more socially orientated view of disability. Such optimism remains tentative and there may be a long way to go before nurses play a key role in challenging discrimination.