Bringing Clinical Context to the Classroom in Nursing Pharmacology: A Case Study

Abstract

Patient safety is part and parcel of nursing care and is taught throughout nursing education, particularly in core pharmacology, first-semester courses. This timing does not allow for clinical application and fosters a theory-practice gap. Transformational learning theory explains how teachers can engage students in active learning and introduce clinical context into a didactic classroom. To that end, an innovative pharmacology assignment, using a real-time nurse case study, was a structured, in-class activity. Post-class reflection focused on contextualizing learning for nursing students without clinical experience. Students reported transformed thinking regarding the importance of meaningful learning in nursing pharmacology.