Against the Current: Lived Experiences of Nursing Educators with Concept-Based Curriculum in Canada

<i>Reforming nursing education from a content-heavy, traditional teaching style to a concept-based one has become necessary to meet the constant change in the health care system. However, in general, no studies have been conducted on the lived experiences of faculty members and educators in Canada after years of implementing the concept-based curriculum (CBC). This qualitative phenomenological study aimed to uncover the meaning of the lived experiences of the faculty members and educators after seven years of reforming the nursing curriculum to a concept-based one. Giorgi's phenomenological descriptive method was used to collect data </i><i>using semi-structured interviews </i><i>with</i><i> three doctoral-prepared faculty members and two master-prepared educators who teach in the undergraduate nursing program at Cape Breton University, Canada. The recorded data was transcribed verbatim and analyzed and synthesized using Giorgi's five data analysis steps. </i><i>The findings of this study revealed that the nursing educators indicated they had challenging experiences teaching CBC. The major  </i><i>General Structural Descriptions (GSD) </i><i>that emerged were Rowing Against the Current and Save Us Before We All Drown. The findings were discussed and conceptualized within the relevant literature. This study highlights the challenges nursing educators face when implementing a CBC, including resistance from students and colleagues, increased workload, and concerns about graduate quality. Therefore, a gradual introduction of CBC is recommended, which will help ease the transition for students and educators. Building supportive substructures is also crucial to handle the increased demands and pressures. </i>