Oncology nursing education: teaching strategies that work.

Faculty at a university school of nursing developed an innovative oncology nursing elective designed to enhance baccalaureate students' knowing and aesthetic appreciation of persons living with cancer. Following completion of the course, students rank ordered class activities they felt would help them most in their nursing careers. Students chose the cancer survivor interview first, followed by a seminar on spirituality and a clinical inquiry project. The implementation and outcomes of these three activities are described. Evaluative comments confirmed that experiential activities enhanced students' knowing of themselves and their patients.