Partnership in Action: A Case Study in Nursing Workforce and Leadership Development in East Africa

East Africa suffers an inordinate burden of disease and does not have the numbers of suitably qualified nurses and midwives to address this challenge.  Focussed efforts in nursing workforce capacity building are needed to build capacity within nursing education, practice and leadership. An enhanced nursing and midwifery workforce is needed across all disciplines with development required at all levels including upgrade of the existing workforce, development of speciality qualifications and enhancement of leadership capacity.   

This presentation involves a case study in which university private-public partnerships have successful contributed to nursing capacity enhancement of nursing education, practice and leadership in the East African nations of Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda. 

Capacity building is not a quick-fix activity.  It takes time and resources.  Equally, the success of capacity building efforts is context dependent.  One size does not fit all and capacity building initiatives must be tailored to the unique cultural context and regulatory environment of each participating nation.   This presentation outlines specific details of capacity building strategies developed and implemented along with a comprehensive range of partnerships which have contributed to capacity building efforts. 

Details are provided regarding the process of stakeholder consultation re workforce need, the range of programmes developed along with graduate numbers and progression to-date.  A full description of the broad range of partnerships needed to successfully implement the strategies along with an outline of factors critical for successful collaborative enterprise.    

The outcomes achieved are presented along with a description of the methods used to evaluate progress and measure success.  Outcomes are measured in terms of graduate numbers, progression to higher degrees, progression to nursing leadership positions and placement into rural and remote settings. 

Lessons learned are outlined for the benefits of nurse educators, nurse executives and policy makers wishing to increase nursing workforce capacity efforts and impacts in a developing context.