Establishment of a short-term global health nursing education experience: impact on students' ways of knowing.

BACKGROUND

The Essentials of Baccalaureate Education for Professional Nursing recognizes that with the increased globalization of health care, professional nurses have to be prepared to practice in multicultural environments and must possess the skills needed to provide culturally competent care.

METHOD

Thirty-five baccalaureate nursing students participated in a short-term course abroad to Jamaica over a period of 3 years. The impact of such an experience on ways of knowing was assessed in 20 participants, using a visual analog scale.

RESULTS

Students believed that the short-term course abroad experience had a positive impact on their personal knowing and that they developed an understanding of a health care system different from their own, while reflecting on issues of social justice.

CONCLUSION

Results provide evidence of the positive impact on short-term course abroad trips on students' ways of knowing. Critical to establishment of these experiences is evaluation of their merit through documentation of student learning outcomes.