Endocrine Abstracts

Background: The increasing burden of diabetes mellitus in Pakistan requires a paradigm shift in the training of health professionals. This paper describes the design and implementation of a nationally introduced, evidence-based curriculum reform aimed at increasing the metabolic and diabetes literacy of nurses and establishing a pathway leading to formalized specialized care provision first time in Pakistan being the First Nurse-Led, training model for the 33% of population with diabetes in the country.

Aim: The aim of this study was to transform nursing practice by advancing nurses’ professional roles first time in Pakistan through the development and implementation of a comprehensive diabetes care curriculum, systematically designed and refined over several years.

Methods: A mixed-methods approach was used to design and pilot a comprehensive, competency-based curriculum of both theoretical and supervised clinical placement. The findings of First National Nursing Survey of 1% of graduate nurses (1220 respondents) across Pakistan form 62 cities recognised the curriculum. The outcome of the study established a scalable, nationally recognized framework for specialized diabetes nurse practitioners.

Results: Preliminary results show significant enhancements in participants’ clinical competence and diagnostic interpretation skills. The effective integration of evidence-informed theoretical teaching with extended clinical practicum provided an immensely engaging and relevant learning environment. The model validated a feasible, scalable, and reproducible pathway to develop Diabetes Nurse Practitioners, addressing a crucial workforce gap.

Conclusion: This national model will transform existing nurse education by embedding a competency-based diabetes literacy into advanced training. Establishment of this nurse-led advanced course is crucial for the national diabetes care infrastructure, enhancing adherence to global treatment guidelines and promoting metabolic health outcomes throughout Pakistan. The study resulted into a National Reforming Model for Teaching Metabolic and Diabetes Literacy.

Keywords: Nurses Advanced Roles, Diabetes Care Curriculum, Nurse-Led interventions, Clinical Competencies, Transforming Nursing Practices