Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze the importance and usability of the curriculum of the oriental nursing educational program among clinical nurses who completed the program. Methods: The study employed a cross-sectional descriptive survey design. Data were collected from March 1, 2010 to April 25, 2010 from 68 oriental or allied hospital nurses who completed the oriental nursing educational program. A70-item questionnaire of importance and usability of the program curriculum and as an instrument of knowledge of oriental nursing were used. Data were analyzed by SPSS 18.0 program. Results: The majority of participants (69.1%) experienced difficulties in clinical practice due to lack of oriental nursing knowledge and skill. In knowledge of oriental nursing, meridian points had the most negative responses (51.5%), followed by oriental documentation (42.7%) and oriental herbal medicine (20.6%). The highest ranked course in importance was oriental fundamental nursing with clinical practicum in usability. The scores of usability items were significantly lower than those of importance items. Conclusion: This study suggests that the clinical job description and role of oriental nurses should be organized. The oriental nursing educational program needs to include more unique clinical nursing content.