title: Health Promotion in Nursing Education: attitudes among nurse students.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The World Health Organization (WHO) European Strategy for Nursing and Midwifery has called for the explicit inclusion and application of health promotion in all nursing curricula. However, research indicates that there are deficiencies in nursing education regarding health promotion in both the theoretical and practical elements of education. Insight into the experiences of European nursing students' attitudes, positive or negative, about working in health promotion may provide a clue whether health promotion will be regarded as an important task and to what extent it will have priority in different parts of Europe.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to compare Italian and Swedish nursing students' attitudes towards health promotion practice on matriculation to nursing school and after a three-year nursing education, and to explore whether attitudes towards health promotion practice correlate with BMI and smoking.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study involved students who started their nursing education in autumn 2009 (n =240). Data were collected via a questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results show that the Swedish students had a more positive stance on health promotion than Italian students did. After completion of a three-year nursing education programme, Italian students' attitudes on health promotion had improved, while no such development was seen in Sweden. Further, no correlation between lifestyle issues and attitudes to health promotion was found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Health promotion in nursing education may have important influence on students' attitudes and thereby on the quantity and quality of future health promotion practice.
authors.affiliation: Professor, School of Social and Health Sciences, Halmstad University, Halmstad, Sweden. cathrine.hildingh@hh.se.
authors.forename: Cathrine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Hildingh
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Cunico
authors.forename: Eva-Carin
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Lindgren
authors.forename: Evy
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lidell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D015992:Body Mass Index; D004506:Education, Nursing; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D012907:Smoking; D013338:Students, Nursing / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden