Background Professional identity formation is a central goal of nursing education, yet less is known about how students connect historical trauma-based learning with ethical nursing practice. Holocaust and genocide education may support moral reflection, empathy, advocacy, and professional responsibility when delivered through trauma-informed pedagogical safeguards. Aim To explore how registered nurses enrolled in a Master of Science in Nursing-Nurse Practitioner program interpreted Holocaust and genocide education and connected this learning to professional identity work and anticipated practice. Design Qualitative study using reflexive thematic analysis. Methods Fourteen de-identified reflective essays written after a structured educational unit on the Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide were analyzed. Analysis was primarily inductive and informed by sensitizing concepts from nursing ethics, trauma-informed education, and professional identity formation. Results Six themes were identified: historical awareness as a moral compass; empathy and cultural humility; recognition of dehumanization and structural violence; resilience and advocacy; leadership and professional responsibility; and reflective self-awareness. Students described historical trauma-based learning as a catalyst for ethical sense-making, emotional processing, and value clarification. They connected this learning to intended professional commitments, including safeguarding dignity, challenging discrimination, attending to trauma histories, and advocating for vulnerable patients. Conclusions Historical trauma-based education may provide a meaningful reflective space for professional identity work in graduate nursing education. The findings suggest that, when supported by trauma-informed pedagogy and reflective writing, difficult historical content can help students articulate ethical commitments and anticipated nursing responsibilities. Future studies should examine whether these immediate reflective commitments are sustained over time and translated into practice.
Anat Romem (Wed,) studied this question.