Examining the impact of a research-based FASD curriculum infusion on nursing students' knowledge and stigmatizing attitudes related to FASDs and alcohol use among women of child-bearing age

The incidence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) in the U.S. is estimated to be from 0.5 to 10 cases per 1,000 live births annually. Educating allied health practitioners about the prevalence and problems associated with FASDs is an important first step in providing competent and comprehensive prevention, identification, and intervention services. The purpose of this presentation is to highlight the impact of infusing a brief research-based curriculum on nursing students’ knowledge and attitudes about substance use disorders (SUDs) among women of childbearing age. Although diagnostic guidelines exist for FAS, it and other FASDs often go unidentified or misdiagnosed because many health care professionals do not recognize the indicators and/or fail to ask patients about their alcohol use. Offsetting the prevalence, as well as the economic and social ramifications of these conditions is dependent on health professionals having expertise in FASD diagnosis and treatment. However, academic programs often have difficulty finding room in the regular curriculum to include enough FASD-specific content to adequately prepare health professionals. To bridge this gap, a brief research-based FASD curriculum was developed to be integrated into existing upper division nursing courses. The 2-hour Curriculum Infusion Package (CIP) is based on the CDC’s FASD Competency-Based Curriculum Development Guide (2009). The FASD-CIP was integrated into existing upper-division nursing academic programs at seven universities throughout the Frontier Regional FASD Training Center region during 2009-2010 semesters. Nursing students (n=147) completed pre/post-test instruments that were based on CIP learning objectives and used to measure the impact of the CIP on knowledge and attitudes related to FASDs and alcohol use among women of childbearing age. In addition to a significant increase in FASD-related knowledge and decrease in attitudes, results suggest that attitudes are significantly more negative towards women with SUDs who are pregnant vs. non-pregnant. Results lend support to the effectiveness of infusing brief research-based curricula into existing academic courses on increasing knowledge and reducing stigmatizing attitudes related to individuals with SUDs, and could have long-term implications for preparing nurses to work with women of childbearing age who have SUDs, as well as individuals who have an FASD.