The Anatomical Society's core anatomy syllabus for undergraduate nursing

Abstract

The Anatomical Society has developed a series of learning outcomes in consultation with nursing educators delivering anatomical content to undergraduate (preregistration) nursing students. A Delphi panel methodology was adopted to select experts within the field that would recommend core anatomical content in undergraduate nursing programmes throughout the UK. Using the Anatomical Society's Core Gross Anatomy Syllabus for Medical Students as a foundation, a modified Delphi technique was used to develop discipline‐specific outcomes to nursing graduates. The Delphi panel consisted of 48 individuals (n = 48) with a minimum of 3 years' experience teaching anatomy to nursing students, representing a broad spectrum of UK Higher Education Institutions. The output from this study was 64 nursing specific learning outcomes in anatomy that are applicable to all undergraduate (preregistration) programmes in the UK. The new core anatomy syllabus for Undergraduate Nursing offers a basic anatomical framework upon which nurse educators, clinical mentors and nursing students can underpin their clinical practice and knowledge. The learning outcomes presented may be used to develop anatomy teaching within an integrated nursing curriculum.

The Anatomical Society core anatomy syllabus for pharmacists: outcomes to create a foundation for practice

“…Phase two mirrors that described by Connolly et al. () within the context of nursing. To identify the Heads of Schools of Pharmacy, data were collated from a search of the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service database to identify HEIs offering MPharm Degree programmes and by subsequent cross‐checking on institutional websites.…”

“…(,b) and Connolly et al. () and therefore references to the relevant methodologies are made throughout. This approach was selected as it would help to ensure that no potential areas of the anatomy syllabus were omitted.…”

The Anatomical Society’s Core Anatomy Syllabus for Dental Undergraduates

“…This study employed a modified Delphi approach, as described in the Anatomical Society's previously published syllabuses (Smith et al ,b; Finn et al ; Connelly et al ; Holland et al ) and methodology paper (Smith et al ,b). The modified Delphi utilised existing learning outcomes as a starting point, rather than a blank page approach as per a traditional Delphi approach (Moxham et al ).…”

“…The research group, who coordinated the project, consisted of three of the contributing authors (GF, JM, MC). All authors have experience in teaching anatomy to undergraduate dental students, and GF, BM and SM have expertise in Delphi methodologies for developing anatomical syllabuses (McHanwell et al ; Moxham et al ; Smith et al ,b; Connelly et al ; Finn et al ; Holland et al ). MC and BM have dental qualifications, and BM has written textbooks on head and neck anatomy for dentistry and is a member of the international committee dealing with anatomical and oroanatomical terminologies.…”

“…Within the UK and Europe, no detailed guidance on recommended anatomical content for dental courses exists. There are, however, recommended core syllabuses developed by the Anatomical Society for several other healthcare disciplines (Smith et al ,b; Finn et al ; Connelly et al ; Holland et al ). This is not to say that there is any evidence of a diminishing role for anatomy within dental curricula.…”