Partnering Transnational Health Care Practica with Faith-based Organizations to Promote Global Health

A dynamic method to advance global health is the partnership of an academic institution and a faith-based organization for an transnational health care practicum. The authors, nursing instructors in a public baccalaureate nursing program, developed partnerships with a local and a national faith-based organization. They developed a one to two week practica for nursing students in Haiti, El Salvador, and Honduras in cooperation with these agencies.

The organizing framework for the practica is Madeleine Leininger's Sunrise Enabler to Discover Culture Care. This framework emphasizes the importance of cultural sensitivity and how universal values are expressed. During the practica, strong emphasis is placed on guided self-reflection in order to promote this cultural sensitivity. Students are encouraged to provide care in a manner that respects the religious values and traditions of the people.

Topics to be discussed include the mutual benefits of partnering for global health, the advantages of partnering with a local versus a national faith-based organization, the development of the practicum, and the effect on the students' personal and professional lives. Student comments about their experience gathered from a qualitative evaluation critique will be shared. Measures to evaluate the students' cultural knowledge and their transformation will be explored. The Transcultural Nursing Immersion Experience Questionnaire (TNIEQ) developed by Dr. Marilyn Ryan will be emphasized. This instrument measures changes in personal and professional values of students participating in these practica.