Assessing knowledge of genomic concepts among Canadian nursing students and faculty

Objectives: Contemporary nurses require genomic literacy to engage in genomics-informed health care. Little is known about the genomic literacy of undergraduate nursing students and faculty in many countries. Concept inventories can be used to assess levels of knowledge and inform curriculum development. Methods: The 31-item Genomic Nursing Concept Inventory (GNCI) was administered to undergraduate nursing students (n=207) and faculty (n=13) in a school of nursing with two sites in western Canada. Results: Scores on the GNCI were low and comparable to those of US students and faculty. Six student characteristics were associated with total score on the GNCI. Conclusions: Both students and faculty need to increase their knowledge of genomics. Mandates from national nursing organizations and international collaboration are needed to develop and implement foundational genomics content for undergraduate curricula to enable graduates to engage in genomics-informed health care.