Evolution of a Nursing Education Program Delivered to Baccalaureate-Prepared Haitian Nurses

Abstract

Haiti has high morbidity and mortality rates, a large proportion of people living in poverty, and a shortage of nurses and nursing faculty members. A partnership program between a US and Haitian university was formed to deliver a certificate program in nursing education. The authors describe their experiences developing, delivering, and evaluating the blended on-site and online program and their future goals.

Framework for collaborative teaching: Strengths and challenges for a different service paradigm in Haiti

“…Their self-motivation, as well as the design of the daily task, helped to accentuate the energy level in the class. Students participated by discussing their lived-in experiences (patients, work environment, administrators' demands) and connected these to the theories presented each day (Lev, Lindgren, Pearson, & Alcindor, 2013). Both instructors were readily able to identify areas of confusion or unfamiliarity due to the freedom the students felt in expressing their understanding and/or asking for clarity.…”

The creation and integration of a nurse educator position in two hospitals in Haiti

“…This shortage is exacerbated by the uneven geographic distribution of personnel between urban and rural areas, the outmigration of personnel to high income countries, and variations in education and training . Recent initiatives and reforms to nursing education and licensure have helped to improve the quality standards of the profession, but this has not addressed knowledge and skill gaps for practicing nurses whose training predates these initiatives and reforms . Moreover, there remains a number of unregulated nursing schools that continue to operate across the country and there is no regulation of auxiliary nurses (those who graduate from unregulated nursing programs and/or who do not pass the licensing examination) who provide the bulk of nursing care .…”