230379 Innovative global partnerships for public health nursing education

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Sara Jarrett, RN, EdD, MS, CNS, CNE , Department of Graduate and Post-Licensure Nursing, Regis University, Aurora, CO
Faye Hummel, RN, PhD, CTN , School of Nursing, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO
This presentation will describe the public health nursing component of a nursing education project developed and implemented in Vietnam between a University in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam and a Denver based non-governmental organization. It will discuss the 15 year journey of incorporating public health nursing principles and concepts into nursing curricula in baccalaureate and graduate programs in Vietnam. Public health nursing is central to baccalaureate nursing education in the United States; however, this is not the case in many developing countries. In many places, the focus of nursing education is based upon medical interventions at the individual level in an acute care setting. Prior to reunification in 1975, Vietnam met population health needs with a sophisticated community health system. Since that time, the system deteriorated and health care moved into hospitals, physician driven and the medical model central to health care delivery. Friendship Bridge Nurses Group (FBNG) has been instrumental in the rebirth of public health nursing in Vietnamese nursing education. Successful curriculum development and implementation strategies utilized will be discussed. Cultural congruent teaching learning assignments and student outcomes will be presented. In addition, the challenges experienced in communicating the value and significance of the nursing role in public health will be shared. Outcomes of this innovative global educational project include partnerships with in-country Vietnamese nurse leaders and educators that support sustainability of curriculum development; development and implementation of graduate nursing education programs within Vietnamese universities; support for nursing leaders to establish a professional nursing infrastructure; collaboration with other groups working with nursing in Vietnam; and sustained change in Vietnamese nursing and health care. Lessons learned and recommendations for planning and implementing similar education programs for other parts of the globe will be discussed.

Learning Areas:
Advocacy for health and health education
Assessment of individual and community needs for health education
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs

Learning Objectives:
Identify two strategies for incorporating culturally appropriate public health nursing into the nursing curriculum of developing nursing programs. Discuss three essential resources for successful curriculum revisions.

Keywords: Global Education, Developing Countries

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am qualified to present because I am a Steering Committee Member for the Friendship Bridge Nurses Group and am a Curriculum Consultant and Coordinator for the group's nursing education projects in Vietnam.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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