title: What does the Development of the European Core Curriculum for Cardiovascular Nurses Mean for Australia?
abstract: A core curriculum for the continuing professional development of nurses has recently been published by the Council on Cardiovascular Nursing and Allied Professions of the European Society of Cardiology. This core curriculum was envisaged to bridge the educational gap between qualification as a nurse and an advance practice role. In addition, the shared elements and international consensus on core themes creates a strong pathway for nursing career development that is directly relevant to Australia. Education programs for nurses in Australia must meet the mandatory standards of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Accreditation Council (ANMAC), but without a national core curriculum, there can be considerable variation in the content of such courses. The core curriculum is developed to be adapted locally, allowing the addition of nationally relevant competencies, for example, culturally appropriate care of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals. Two existing specialist resources could be utilised to deliver a tailored cardiovascular core curriculum; the Heart Education Assessment and Rehabilitation Toolkit (HEART) online (www.heartonline.org.au) and HeartOne (www.heartone.com.au). Both resources could be further enhanced by incorporating the core curriculum. The release of the European core curriculum should be viewed as a call to action for Australia to develop a core curriculum for cardiovascular nurses.
authors.affiliation: Sydney Nursing School, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia; The George Institute for Global Health, Sydney, NSW, Australia. Electronic address: lis.neubeck@sydney.edu.au.
authors.forename: Lis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Neubeck
authors.affiliation: Sydney Nursing School, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Stella Hsi-Man
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: National Heart Foundation of Australia (NSW Division), Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Cate
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ferry
authors.affiliation: Sydney Nursing School, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Robyn
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gallagher
mesh_terms: D000068:Accreditation / Q000592:standards; D001315:Australia; D003479:Curriculum / Q000592:standards*; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009720:Nurse Clinicians / Q000193:education* / Q000592:standards; D000095283:Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
keywords: Cardiovascular nursing; Clinical competencies; Core curriculum; Professional development