CASN Announces CART Abortion Care Nursing Education Project

OTTAWA, ON, May 18, 2023 /CNW/ - Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing ("CASN") issued a statement today announcing the launch of a nursing education project to increase equitable access to abortion services.

The project, titled "Fostering change in entry-to-practice education programs for nurses in Canada to increase equitable access to abortion services" is a component of the University of British Columbia initiative "The Contraception and Abortion Research Team (CART) Access Project: Advancing access to abortion for under-served populations through tools for healthcare professionals and people seeking care", which has been funded by funded by Health Canada.

CASN, in partnership with CART, will develop national educational guidelines for Canadian schools of nursing on abortion care and will promote the integration of the guidelines into nursing curricula

"CASN is committed to the advancement of access to abortion for under-served populations through educational tools for healthcare, nursing, nursing education professionals, and people seeking care. CASN has been a longstanding supporter of advancement of nursing knowledge in areas of public health such as contraception and abortion research. There is an urgent need to strengthen abortion care in nursing education curricula and particularly in courses concerned with reproductive health and public health. National nursing education guidelines on abortion care will provide much needed direction to schools of nursing to augment this aspect of nursing care in their curricula," said Cynthia Baker, Executive Director, CASN.

CART is a national, interdisciplinary, cross-sectional collaboration that conducts research incorporating an intersectional lens to advance equitable access to high-quality family planning knowledge, methods, and services for people across Canada. CART is located at the University of British Columbia.  The CART project is led by Dr. Wendy Norman, one of the co-leads of CART.  If you have questions or would like to be involved in this project, please contact CASN's CART Project Coordinator Leah Watts at [email protected].

The Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing is the national voice for nursing education, research, and scholarship and represents baccalaureate and graduate nursing programs across Canada. CASN's mission is to lead nursing education and nursing scholarship in the interest of healthier Canadians.

Health Canada is the Federal department responsible for helping Canadians maintain and improve their health, while respecting individual choices and circumstances. Health Canada's goal is for Canada to be among the countries with the healthiest people in the world. The views expressed herein do not represent the views of Health Canada.

SOURCE Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing