Curricula development of diabetic patients care in disasters for nurses

Diabetes is one of the most common chronic diseases in the world that occurs at the time of disasters and its complications are aggravated. Therefore, developing a comprehensive plan seems necessary to care for diabetic patients in disasters.

This study aimed to develop the elements of a curriculum for nurses regarding diabetic patients’ care in disasters.

This was a multi-stage quantitative study in which 380 nurses working in the Armed Forces hospitals in Tehran, Iran, in 1399 participated, who were selected through convenience sampling. The study units reported their educational needs to provide services to diabetic patients in disasters in a valid and reliable researcher-made questionnaire with 72 items using the self-assessment method. According to the needs assessment results, the curriculum elements were presented based on a six-step process. The Delphi method was utilized in two rounds to determine the desirability of the program. The statistical sample at this stage was 10 expert professors selected through snowball sampling. Finally, the developed curriculum was reviewed, revised, and approved in an expert roundtable session. Data were analyzed using the SPSS software (version 22).

The results of the educational needs assessment of nurses regarding diabetic patients’ care in disasters were identified in the form of 9 tasks, 19 sub-tasks, and 72 minor tasks. According to the needs assessment and international experience, the elements of the disaster care curriculum were developed, and their desirability was approved by experts in two rounds using the Delphi method.

The developed program can be effective in guiding nurses to provide care to diabetic patients in disasters. It is suggested that the program developed in this study be presented at regular intervals in the form of in-service retraining programs for nurses.