Substance Use Education: An Open Access Module for Undergraduate Nursing Students

Background: Substance use is a pervasive issue in the United States affecting millions of people. Nurses must be prepared to offer compassionate, competent care to patients who use substances, for which training may not be available in all nursing programs across the U. S. The Nurses' Substance Use Education Through a Massive Open Online Course (NSUE-MOOC) is a virtual, free-access teaching tool to provide substance use education. Method: Using a pre-post design, students who used Module 1: Substance Use: What Every Nurse Needs to Know in a nursing course were surveyed. Surveys were anonymous and voluntary. Independent and paired t tests assessed participants' change in knowledge, confidence, and stigma. Results: Module 1 effectively increased knowledge and confidence while decreasing stigma related to substance use (p < .05). Conclusion: The NSUE-MOOC can be used by faculty who may not have content expertise to provide effective substance use education to nursing students.