Cross sectional survey of attitudes on sustainability and climate change among baccalaureate nursing faculty and students.

BACKGROUND

Nurse educators are critical to ensuring future nurses are prepared to meet healthcare needs due to climate change.

AIM

The purpose of this research was to assess the attitudes of nursing students and faculty on sustainability and climate change in nursing and nursing education.

DESIGN

This study used a descriptive, cross-sectional online survey of nursing students and faculty recruited online and at national conferences.

SETTINGS

Online survey.

PARTICIPANTS

A convenience sample of students and faculty were recruited from a national student nursing convention and a national meeting of community health nursing educators along with the principal investigator's university. Additional faculty were recruited from national nursing education organization email listservs. Eligibility criteria included adults 18 years or older who are enrolled students or faculty in an undergraduate nursing program.

METHODS

Participants completed the Sustainability Attitudes in Nursing Survey (SANS_2) survey online. Survey responses were downloaded and analyzed using IBM SPSS.

RESULTS

Independent sample Mann-Whitney U tests of responses from faculty and students was significantly different, p = 0.047, for the question "Issues about climate change should be included in the nursing curriculum". Comparison of SANS_2 overall means from first-year nursing students in other countries showed lower mean scores among first-year U.S. students that climate and sustainability are important issues of nursing and nursing education. Comparison of faculty overall SANS_2 means found greater support for including climate change and sustainability among U.S. nursing faculty when compared with faculty from South Carolina.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the survey found differences in support among baccalaureate faculty and students for including climate change and sustainability in nursing education. Additional research into the effectiveness of learning activities needs to be done by nurse educators and researchers as part of on-going efforts to ensure future nursing students understand the impact of climate change on health.