LAUSR

AIM/OBJECTIVE To explore nursing/midwifery students' experiences of the teaching and learning of units one and two of a national undergraduate curriculum. BACKGROUND The 'National Undergraduate Curriculum for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management: Making Every Contact Count' (MECC) is part of Ireland's national policy to support the prevention of chronic disease by promoting health behaviour change. This is being implemented as a programme within the Irish Health Service and is also being delivered, for the first time in undergraduate medical, allied health and nursing/midwifery education by tertiary education institutes. DESIGN Qualitative descriptive research. METHODS Purposeful sampling was used to recruit participants (n = 17) from an undergraduate nursing/midwifery programme (n = 131) in one tertiary level Irish institution. Four focus groups were undertaken by two members of the research team, who were not part of the module teaching team. Each focus group was guided by a semi-structured interview guide, recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic data analysis was undertaken. RESULTS Three main themes were identified, namely: Building foundations and making connections; Personal responsibility and the Ah factor: now I understand. CONCLUSION Findings indicate that students had a positive learning experience whilst also highlighting the students' transition to lifelong learning encompassing adult learning and personal responsibility.