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Societal Trends in Nursing and Patient Education
Jill Winston
Grand Canyon University
NUR 647-E
Nursing Education Seminar I
Deborah Clark
March 3, 2021
, 2
Societal Trends in Nursing and Patient Education
Introduction
Similar to other disciplines and professional practices, there is a wide spectrum of factors
that affect nursing and patient education, including emerging trends in the society. The pattern of
these factors largely emanates from the society’s demand, in which each of the trends
precipitates an element of change in the entire education or part of the curriculum. Among the
trends that have so far emerged in the recent past include a shift in demographics, health
information privacy, increased technological growth, and social determinants of health (SDOH),
such as level of income. This paper explores the impact of social determinants of health on
nursing and the overall patient education and strategies that can be employed to improve their
positive impacts.
A Societal Trend Affecting Curriculum in Nursing and Patient Education
Social determinants of health include the conditions in which individuals are born, live,
work, grow, and age, which impact their health (Thornton & Persaud, 2018). Nursing holds the
greatest capacity to address the potential challenges of the 21st century. A major societal trend
that affects curriculum in nursing and patient education, which is worth discussing is SDOH.
This societal trend affects the curriculum in the sense that an effective curriculum should steer
community engagement, enhance human experiences, and promote student reflection. Moreover,
an effective curriculum needs to take into consideration students’ needs and allow them to
engage in curriculum reflection (Thornton & Persaud, 2018). SDOH allows the nursing
curriculum and faculty to design learning opportunities that takes place in a wide range of
settings.
The area of SDOH is an emerging trend in the nursing profession and in nursing
curriculum as it provides non-traditional clinical placements, such as free clinics and subsidized
Societal Trends in Nursing and Patient Education
Jill Winston
Grand Canyon University
NUR 647-E
Nursing Education Seminar I
Deborah Clark
March 3, 2021
, 2
Societal Trends in Nursing and Patient Education
Introduction
Similar to other disciplines and professional practices, there is a wide spectrum of factors
that affect nursing and patient education, including emerging trends in the society. The pattern of
these factors largely emanates from the society’s demand, in which each of the trends
precipitates an element of change in the entire education or part of the curriculum. Among the
trends that have so far emerged in the recent past include a shift in demographics, health
information privacy, increased technological growth, and social determinants of health (SDOH),
such as level of income. This paper explores the impact of social determinants of health on
nursing and the overall patient education and strategies that can be employed to improve their
positive impacts.
A Societal Trend Affecting Curriculum in Nursing and Patient Education
Social determinants of health include the conditions in which individuals are born, live,
work, grow, and age, which impact their health (Thornton & Persaud, 2018). Nursing holds the
greatest capacity to address the potential challenges of the 21st century. A major societal trend
that affects curriculum in nursing and patient education, which is worth discussing is SDOH.
This societal trend affects the curriculum in the sense that an effective curriculum should steer
community engagement, enhance human experiences, and promote student reflection. Moreover,
an effective curriculum needs to take into consideration students’ needs and allow them to
engage in curriculum reflection (Thornton & Persaud, 2018). SDOH allows the nursing
curriculum and faculty to design learning opportunities that takes place in a wide range of
settings.
The area of SDOH is an emerging trend in the nursing profession and in nursing
curriculum as it provides non-traditional clinical placements, such as free clinics and subsidized
