38. Aiming at culture conscious and tailored nursing (251)
Raija Kokko, Senior Lecturer, nursing, School of Health Care, Tampere, Finland
Raija.Kokko@piramk.fi
Abstract:
Background:
The curriculum for the education of nurses stipulates that the nurse at work needs among others cultural and international knowledge, and therefore, it is important for student nurses to acquire experience of the working culture and habits of a foreign culture already during training. Student exchange is used as a teaching and learning method to acquire cultural knowledge of other countries needed in nursing today.
Aim:
This study aimed to describe the development process towards transcultural nursing from the nursing education perspective.
Methods:
Data was gathered 2002-2004 and consisted of student nurses' diaries (N=6) and travel reports (N=45). Qualitative content analysis method was applied to the data.
Results:
The cultural knowledge gathered from the exchange countries increased the student nurses’ cultural knowledge base and in addition, their personal knowledge base increased. All the student nurses went through a cultural change and growth (learning) process and both the increased cultural and personal knowledge bases were utilized in this process. The student nurses wanted to modify their own nursing on the bases of their learning experiences in order to improve the quality of it. In this process some of the cultural values and nursing practices of the student nurses were maintained as learned earlier and some of them were repatterned. The use of the knowledge acquired leads to nurses’ cultural competence and preparedness to meet the cultural needs of the patient, and therefore nurses will be able to provide transcultural quality nursing to their patients. Transcultural quality nursing means here nursing where the cultural knowledge and experience acquired on exchange are utilized when assessing and implementing the patient’s care.
Conclusion:
The development process towards transcultural quality nursing described in this study provides one option to meet the challenges of the globalization of nursing.
Recommended reading list:
• Watt S., Law K., Ots U., Waago K. (2002) Refections across the boundaries: The European nursing module. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 318-324
• Koskinen L. (2003) To survive, you have to adjust. Study abroad as a process learning intercultural competence. University of Kuopio Publications, Kuopio
• Leininger M. (2002) Transcultural nursing, and globalization of health care: importance, focus, and historical aspects.McGraw-Hill, USA
Source of Funding: N/A
Amount in Funding: N/A
Biography:
RN, MScN, LiScN,doctoral candidate (doctoral dissertation: Title: Aiming at Culture Consciuos and Tailored Nursing), senior lecturer)