Cancer Education and Training — Nursing

Abstract

The need for more education and training for nurses in oncology has become increasingly evident over the past few years. For some time many nurse educators have felt concerned about the small amount of attention given to this subject during the nurse’s basic training, but it is, of course, very difficult in a three-year work-learn programme to prepare nurses adequately to meet all the demands expected of them as registered nurses. As the patterns of health care change, nursing education has had to accommodate itself to meet these changes; so the nurse now in training has to have a much wider background than was previously required. Mental health, obstetrics, geriatrics, community-care options give the nurse a much wider background to care, but limit to some extent the depth of knowledge in any one speciality. Medical specialization and the multiplicity of specialist units have meant that during basic training it is impossible to prepare nurses adequately for all the situations in which they may later find themselves.