Knowledge and Attitude of Nursing Faculty on Integrating Forensic Nursing into the Undergraduate Nursing Curriculum in Selected Nursing Colleges, Durgapur, WB: A Descriptive Study

Abstract

The advancement of forensic nursing in the last decade has developed a new and better image of the nursing profession and provided services to living and dead people. This discipline provides a new perspective on the approach of holistic care for patients at hospitals or community centers involved in legal issues. Today, applying legal sciences in nursing has formed wider roles in clinical research related to crime and legal processes to promote public health and safety. This study aims to assess the knowledge and attitude of nursing Faculty on Integrating Forensic Nursing into the Undergraduate Nursing Curriculum A descriptive research design was used with a convenience sample of 100 nursing faculties from various Nursing Colleges in Durgapur. Among the 100 nursing faculties included in this study, the majority (65%) had a moderate level of knowledge, 18% had adequate knowledge and 17% had inadequate knowledge about integrating forensic nursing into the undergraduate nursing curriculum. Attitudes of nursing faculty towards integrating forensic nursing into the nursing curriculum depict that 94% of participants are neutral and 6% have negative attitudes but none of them have positive attitudes. The education background as well as service background were associated (p < 0.05) with the level of knowledge of nursing faculty. The study reveals that the integration of forensic nursing into to nursing curriculum can be well implemented for the betterment of the nursing curriculum as a subspecialty which can provide a wider scope in the nursing profession.