Paper
Thursday, 20 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Best Practices in Nursing Education
It's Time to Get Out of the Classroom: An International Service-Learning Project for Nursing Students
Janelle Gardner, RNC, MSN, PhD, School of Nursing, California State University, Chico, Chico, CA, USA
Learning Objective #1: Describe how an international service-learning project can develop cultural competency.
Learning Objective #2: Discuss how the nursing students’ experiences in Mexico will affect the nursing care they provide to Hispanic patients in the United States.
Service-learning is an educational means to prepare future nurses for the diverse world in which they live. Service-learning provides rich and unique learning experiences that integrate classroom instruction, service, and knowledge development. These projects focus on building new values and skills, cultural knowledge, commitment to societal needs, and enhancing critical thinking and communication skills. A major advantage of international service-learning projects is the learning and understanding that takes place from exposure to the daily realities of life and health issues in another country. These realities cannot be fully understood by didactic instruction alone.
 
A nursing educator took eight nursing students to southern Mexico to participate in an international service-learning project and provide healthcare to the rural indigenous people in the state of Oaxaca. Home visits were conducted and clinics were set up in small isolated towns where access to healthcare is very limited. The nursing students experienced the culture by staying in local homes and participating with meals and family life. The homes had no running water and cooking was done outside using wood for fuel.
 
The students wrote in reflective journals throughout their experience. Participation in this international service-learning project was life-changing for the students and journal entries will be shared that illustrate student learning and growth. This project demonstrates the value of international service-learning in the development of cultural competency, and how the experience will assist in providing optimal nursing care for Hispanic patients in the United States.
 

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