AI Literacy
Programme-Level AI Literacy Strategy
Original work: "Educators' guide to multimodal learning and Generative AI" — Tünde Varga-Atkins, Samuel Saunders, et al. (2024/25) — CC BY-NC 4.0
Adapted for UK Nursing Education by: Lincoln Gombedza, RN (LD)
A coherent programme-wide strategy ensures AI literacy develops progressively across the nursing curriculum, aligning with NMC proficiencies and preparing graduates for AI-enhanced practice.
Strategic Framework
Vision Statement
"To develop nursing graduates who are AI-literate, critically engaged, and ethically grounded professionals capable of integrating AI responsibly into person-centred care while maintaining professional accountability and clinical excellence."
Strategic Objectives
- Competency Development: Ensure all graduates achieve core AI literacy competencies
- Progressive Integration: Build AI literacy systematically across three years
- NMC Alignment: Map AI competencies to NMC proficiencies
- Quality Assurance: Maintain high standards in AI-enhanced education
- Ethical Practice: Embed responsible AI use throughout curriculum
Progressive Curriculum Mapping
We use a scaffolded approach: Foundation (Year 1) → Reference (Year 2) → Mastery (Year 3).
- Year 1: Foundation
- Year 2: Application
- Year 3: Mastery
🟢 Focus: Understanding & Awareness
Core Competencies
- Basic AI concepts and terminology ("What is an LLM?")
- Safe and ethical AI tool use (Privacy first!)
- Critical evaluation of AI outputs (Hallucination checking)
Module Integration Points
- Foundations of Nursing: Introduction to AI in healthcare contexts.
- Academic Skills: Using AI for brainstorming (but not writing) essays.
- Evidence-Based Practice: Distinguishing between AI summaries and primary research.
Key Assessment
- "My First Prompt": A reflective exercise on creating and critiquing a simple patient scenario.
🟡 Focus: Integration & Practice
Core Competencies
- AI-enhanced clinical reasoning (Decision support)
- Evidence-based AI verification (Checking against NICE)
- Patient-centred AI application (Communication skills)
Module Integration Points
- Care Planning: Generating and critiquing complex care plans.
- Pharmacology: Using AI to summarize drug interactions (then verifying in BNF).
- Health Promotion: Creating accessible leaflets for diverse groups.
Key Assessment
- The "Red Pen" Exercise: Students are given a flawed AI-generated care plan and must identify all clinical errors and ethical risks.
🔴 Focus: Leadership & Innovation
Core Competencies
- Advanced AI integration (Workflow optimization)
- Quality improvement with AI Data analysis
- Policy contribution & Advocacy (Leading the change)
Module Integration Points
- Leadership: Managing teams using digital tools.
- Quality Improvement: Analysing audit data patterns.
- Transition to Practice: Understanding the AI tools used in local NHS Trusts.
Key Assessment
- Innovation Project: Design a quality improvement initiative that safely leverages AI to improve patient outcomes.
NMC Proficiency Mapping
How does this align with the Future Nurse Standards (2018)? Click to explore the mapping for each platform.
Platform 1: Being an Accountable Professional
- AI Integration: Understand professional accountability. If AI gives wrong advice, you are accountable, not the algorithm.
- Evidence: Reflective accounts of AI usage demonstrating full disclosure and checking against the Code.
Platform 2: Promoting Health and Preventing Ill Health
- AI Integration: Use AI to draft health promotion materials (e.g., "Summarise this diabetes advice for an 8-Year old").
- Evidence: Verified, clinically accurate patient information leaflets created with AI assistance.
Platform 3: Assessing Needs and Planning Care
- AI Integration: AI-assisted holistic assessment prompts. Critically evaluating AI care plan suggestions for person-centredness.
- Evidence: Care plans that explicitly note where AI was used for brainstorming and where human judgement applied corrections.
Platform 4: Providing and Evaluating Care
- AI Integration: Using AI for decision support (e.g., "List potential differential diagnoses for these symptoms") but evaluating clinically.
- Evidence: Clinical portfolios showing safe use of decision support tools.
Platform 5: Leading and Managing Nursing Care
- AI Integration: Leadership in digital transformation. Teaching junior staff how to use tools safely.
- Evidence: Teaching plan for a "Digital Safety" huddle.
Platform 6: Improving Safety and Quality of Care
- AI Integration: Identifying how AI can reduce error (e.g., double-checking calculations) vs. where it introduces error (hallucination).
- Evidence: Safety incident analysis involving digital tools.
Platform 7: Coordinating Care
- AI Integration: Using tools to summarise complex discharge notes for interdisciplinary teams (while maintaining privacy).
- Evidence: Simulated discharge letters edited for clarity and accuracy.
Implementation Roadmap
A sample timeline for rolling out this strategy in Year 1:
Stakeholder Engagement
To succeed, you need everyone on board:
| Stakeholder | Key Message | Support Required |
|---|---|---|
| Students | "AI helps you think, it doesn't think for you." | Clear workspaces, paid tool access (ideally), safety nets. |
| Staff | "You don't need to be a tech wizard, just a safe practitioner." | Time allowance for training, "Sandpits" for experimentation. |
| Practice Partners | "We are training nurses for the digital future of the NHS." | Alignment on what tools are permitted in clinical areas. |
Next: Explore Institutional Framework for university-wide strategy.