A cultural exchange: nursing students engage in transformative healthcare offshore
A group of 18 second-year Bachelor of Nursing students recently embarked on an overseas study program to Fiji, learning that community, family and faith formed the bedrocks of providing holistic healthcare in the remote community of Naseovou.
Coined as ‘life-changing’ by both staff and students, the learning abroad program provided fertile ground for transformative education within both the community and student cohort, with students learning about profound factors underpinning community-based primary healthcare.
CQUniversity Lecturer and Assistant Head of Course for the Bachelor of Nursing Ellie Cutmore was one of the academics to co-lead the trip with Associate Lecturer in Nursing Megan Kelso, who said through the warmth of the community and cultural immersion, students felt like they had matured as a person as a result of the program.
“Students were challenged to think about how they could provide healthcare in the context of Fijian culture, and came to understand that kindness and compassion is equally as important as the resources you have to provide care,” Mrs Cutmore said.
“The students took part in this program with a keen desire to make a contribution and share their knowledge with the Fijian people, and by the end of the trip they were humbly reflecting on the many significant contributions that this immersive experience had made to them.”
During the 15-day program, students spent a week on homestay in Naseovou, sharing in families’ customs, routines and lifestyle, providing the students with an in-depth insight to a new cultural way of life, in turn also being able to share and provide health education with their host families.
“During the health clinics in the village, students undertook health screening and assessments and provided health education,” Mrs Cutmore said.
“These included general physical assessments, cervical screening, domiciliary home visits, men’s and women’s health information sessions, mental health and substance use education, and delivery of a health camp to the village youths.”
Health outcomes were reported to include breakthrough treatment for two patients facing critical health concerns with high blood pressure levels and immobility, with student assessment resulting in physiotherapy referral and medication compliance. Treatment enabled positive lifestyle and diet factors to be implemented, along with access to mobility equipment.
“It was incredible to see the community of Naseovou really taking on board what we taught and implemented,” said Ms Kelso.
“Following recommendations by the students, the village is now considering implementing designated smoking areas and smoke-free zones, and families began reducing sugar intake and teaching their children safer handwashing practices.”
CQUniversity was also able to donate first aid supplies to the village to support their village healthcare worker, along with feminine hygiene packs to Homes of Hope, a Fijian-based organisation supporting women and girls who are victims of, or at risk of sexual violence.
Students also raised funds in excess of $3000 towards Gift of Life, a Fijian charity supporting free cardiac screening and life-saving surgery for children in Fiji and neighbouring South Pacific islands, along with additional funds to support children to attend a school camp.
“The community of Naseovou were so grateful for our visit, and students reflected that some of the benefits of this experience included: recognising the importance of slowing down, giving others time and space to talk, and truly listening; the importance of establishing strong therapeutic relationships; being resilient; making the most of limited resources and ‘doing more with less’, and the significance that family and community plays in an individual’s health,” Mrs Cutmore said.
For Townsville nursing student Rachael McLean, the program cemented the fact that she had made the right decision for her career. And having experienced the deep loss of a close family member, Mrs McLean has been witness to the kind of compassion, kindness and selflessness from the nurses in their care, characteristics mirrored in the nurses of the Naseovou village.
“I started studying at 48 years of age, and the experience in Fiji further cemented I had made the right decision to change careers,” Mrs McLean said.
“Fijian nurses have a deep connection to their communities which is very inspiring, and the skills and resilience they demonstrate broadened my understanding of the holistic nature of nursing.
“Witnessing the commitment Fijian families have to looking after their family members and community members in their own homes strengthened my personal goal of working in this field.”
Similarly in another part of the world, 11 nursing and five social work students ventured to the Ek Phnom District of Battambang, Cambodia under the guidance of Lecturer in Nursing Penny Heidke, Associate Lecturer Jess Hocking and Social Work Field Education Academic Lead Robyn Kemble.
“One of our main objectives was to address critical obstacles in accessible healthcare for Cambodians such as distance, costs, and trust in doctors,” Ms Heidke said.
“We observed key socioeconomic trends and themes – even beyond health and education – and assessed how more effective support can be provided to the community in the future.
“The experience went above and beyond ticking the boxes that professional placement requires, where students come away with knowledge that can only be found on a cultural exchange like this – it’s by far the best overseas program we’ve done.”
These learning abroad programs were made possible by New Colombo Plan Mobility Grants, a signature initiative of the Australian Government which aims to lift knowledge of the Indo-Pacific in Australia by supporting Australian undergraduates to study and undertake internships in the region. Find out more information on learning abroad programs by visiting the CQUGlobal webpage.
