Care for Europe Erasmus+ KA2 project aims to internationalise nursing courses through a better integration of incoming nursing students during their clinical placements. Digital material created in this project will also provide virtual reality educational experiences for nursing students. Nursing professions are increasingly concerned with globalisation and it is therefore important to train our future nurses in multicultural teamwork so that they acquire intercultural competences already during their studies. The cultural diversity of the four participants located in four different European regions: France, Hungary, Spain and Finland, will result in rich exchanges allowing the comparison of visions, cultures and care practices.
Since 2020, the Care for Europe Erasmus+ project (2020-1-FR01-KA203-080111) aims to internationalize nursing mobility studies through a better integration of incoming students during their clinical placements. Four higher education institutions in four European countries - the French Red Cross IRFSS Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes in France, the University of Pécs in Hungary, the University of Lleida in Spain and Laurea University of Applied Sciences in Finland-consider it important to train their future nurses in multicultural teamwork so that they acquire intercultural skills. The cultural diversity of the 4 project partners’ cooperation resulted in three tangible outputs (a MOOC, a short film and a guide about good practices) at the end of the project, which manifest the comparison of visions, cultures and complementary care practices.
After the implementation of the project, a final conference, the last multiplier event will be be held in Pécs on the 1st of June, 2023 organized by the University of Pécs, Faculty of Health Sciences. At the conference we would like to display the following project results in their final stage that the four partners have co-created:
You are warmly invited to our event, the programme of which is as follows:
Event, Date: Multiplier event 1st June, 2023.
Venue: Main auditory hall (7621, Pécs Vörösmarty u. 4, ground floor) Pécs, Hungary
9:30 - 10:00
Arrival and registration of the participants
10:00 – 11:00
Presentation of the project aims, results, consortium partners’ role
11:00 – 11:45
Presentation of the Guidebook- Michael Faure, Sylvain Dumont and Caroline Olivier (IRFSS AuRA, France)
11:45 - 12:15
Coffee break
12:15 – 13:00
Presentation of the Film-Dr.Erica Briones Vozmediano, PhD, Josep Maria Gutierrez (University of Lleida, Spain)
13:00 – 14:00
Lunch break-Sandwich lunch
14:00 – 14:45
Presentation of the MOOC-Mika Alastalo, Niina Glerean (Laurea University of Applied Sciences, Finland)
14:45 – 15:45
Summary of experiences and questions
15:45 - 16:00
Press statements, closure of the event-Dr. habil Orsolya Máté, PhD
(University of Pécs, Hungary)
Registration link for the event is open until 24th May (Wednesday), 2023: https://forms.gle/kwE5UUtNLucYxFjQ6
One of the intellectual outputs of the Care for Europe-project is a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), which aims at orientating and facilitating nursing exchange students’ clinical placements abroad. The theoretical framework and the development process of the MOOC is described in the earlier blog text (March 11th, 2022). A brief summary to refresh one’s memory: 360-pictures are used to create virtual tours in the local learning environments, and the study content is emerged in the virtual environment.
During the spring 2022 the first version of the MOOC content and assignments were pilot tested in the project countries (Finland, France, Hungary and Spain). Based on the piloting results, some modifications and improvements were made in the content and assignments and the demo version of the virtual MOOC was created in the ThingLink platform.
The demo version was produced by the Finnish project team in the Finnish content. The production started with photo shooting in hospitals. The photo shooting had to be postponed several times due to visiting restrictions in the hospitals caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. However, finally the 360 pictures were taken in Helsinki University Hospital in April and May 2022. Two nursing exchange students and one local student in Laurea University of Applied Sciences were collaborating in photo shooting as they acted in the roles of the nurses and patients. 360 pictures introduce different clinical environments within the hospitals such as operating rooms, outpatient clinic and medication room. Additionally, a few pictures were taken in the learning environments in the Laurea Campus.
Individual pictures were combined in the ThingLink platform to create virtual rooms, where one can navigate and familiarize oneself with the Finnish hospital and learning environment. The MOOC content focusing on clinical placements in Finland was added in the pictures as tags. While navigating through the virtual environment from one room to another, one can open the tags and see the content. Also quizzes and reflective assignments were added as tags.
The demo version of the MOOC was introduced in the multiplier dissemination event in Lleida, Spain on June 3rd, 2022 (see blog text). The feedback by the audience was encouraging and the use of 360 pictures was considered as innovative and fresh approach. After introduction of the demo version produced by the Finnish team, other project countries started to create their country-specific 360 pictures and content. The idea is that the content follows the jointly agreed and evidence-based theoretical framework while taking the country-specific characteristics into account.
On the French side, the 360 degree photos were taken in two health facilities. They were first welcomed at the Saint-Joseph Saint-Luc hospital which is located in the heart of Lyon. The IRFSS AuRA team was accompanied by the communication manager and the health executives of the different services to capture the places that will be frequented by the future Erasmus+ trainees. The rest of the photos were then taken at the Centre médico-chirurgical de réadaptation des Massues, a Red Cross facility. The contents were developed by the trainers and tested by the local students though one to one interview.
The Hungarian team took the 360 degrees pictures at the facilities of the University of Pécs Clinical Center. Some of the local nursing students were happy to assist with the photoshoot. After the photos were processed the team started to work on creating the learning scenarios for the MOOC in Thinglink platform. Previously prepared and discussed learning material was then added to the scenes, and quizzes for the students were created to be able to assess their progress. It was a great opportunity to learn how these online virtual tours are created, and the Hungarian team is looking forward to the incoming students experiencing this kind of learning.
The 360 degrees pictures of the Spanish team were taken at a simulation center collaborating with the University, where the Nursing students conduct simulation practices from the first course of the Degree. This center is located in Igualada (province of Barecelona), where the University of Lleida has its second campus. A 360º picture of the outside of this campus was also taken. To take the pictures, the Spanish team was assisted by a professional team working in the simulation center. Taking the pictures and creating the scenarios for the MOOC was a funny experience, meaning that two members of the Spanish team appear in the pictures together with a Nursing teacher from the University, and members of the professional team working in the simulation center. Then the pictures where imported to the MOOC in Thinglink platform. We are proud of the result!
The aim is that all country-specific versions of the MOOC will be ready in November 2022, and they can be evaluated in the transnational meeting in Lyon, France. Final adjustments will be made based on the feedback of the project team and the MOOC will be launched in April 2023.
The Saint-Etienne institute of the Red Cross had the pleasure to host the second training activity of the Care for Europe project! This summer school gathered 19 students from the four partners of the project and their accompanying teachers. It was supposed to run from July 4th to July 13th but was unfortunately ended earlier because of the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic.
THE SUMMER SCHOOL PROGRAM
The program content was combining workshops about interculturality, cultural competences in nursing, simulation workshops and some cultural activities. After the arrival of partners on Sunday 3rd July, everybody was welcome by Mohamed Abdirahman, the director of the Saint-Etienne site of the Regional Institute of Social and Nursing Education (Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes) of the French Red Cross. A welcoming breakfast was served to everyone and after a deeper presentation of the program; the students and the accompanying teachers were taken to a guided tour of the institute.
After the tour, the students were divided into mixed groups to “get to know each other” activities. The following morning, country groups prepared a presentation about their country/culture, city and university campus as well as nursing degree specificities. The presentations were a good opportunity for everyone to discover the culture as well as the differences in nursing degrees of their co-participants! The next day, the UFCV, a youth organization involved in supporting young people in the preparation of their mobility, ran a day dedicated to intercultural awareness.
The full initial program below:
A EUROPEAN PROJECT IN TIME OF A COVID PANDEMIC
The Care for Europe partners are used to adapt and adjust all activities in line with our health context. Indeed, as the project started in September 2020, many activities have been impacted by the Covid 19 situation…And so has it been again with the summer school!
Indeed, after several positive Covid tests among participants, we made the decision to stop the summer school to ensure the health security of everyone. It was impossible to modify our program with much common work in groups and simulation activities being one of the highlight of this training activity. Despite everybody had to come back home earlier, the first days were a good overview of what could be such a stay, leading to interesting discussions between students from different countries, and what seems to be an absolute enriching experience thanks to the Erasmus+ program!
A multiplier dissemination event of the project “Care for Europe” is being organized to take place in Lleida (Spain) on 3rd June. Initially, this event was supposed to be held in Pécs.The event will provide an overview of the project and will be an opportunity to discuss topics related to nursing education and its internationalization.
The welcoming speech will be given by the Government of Catalonia Director of Health professionals, Dr. Montserrat Gea Sanchez. The project managers will present the project to the participants, followed by a round table discussion. Five guests from Spanish Universities and Hospitals will talk about the need for multiculturalism in clinical nursing practice.
During this event, one of the intellectual outputs will be released: a film tracking the experience of incoming nursing students carrying out a clinical placement, and of the clinical mentors supervising them at the hospitals and health care centers. This film was recorded based on interviews made in the four countries (Spain, France, Hungary, and Finland) with students from Italy, Germany, Poland, Spain, and France, who were conducting their clinical practices in one of the four countries participating in the project; and with clinical mentors from France, Hungary and Spain.
Afternoon workshops will present the film, the first finished intellectual output of the project and the MOOC, the second project result. The latter is designed to support students in their clinical practices abroad. The audience has opportunity to get an overview of the MOOC and test its functionality in 360-environment.
To close the event, Anabel Fernández from the Professional Nursing College of Lleida will offer the closing speech.
The previous day, on 2nd June, a transnational meeting will take place between the team members, the first live meeting after the travel restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic. It will be the opportunity to finally meet each other "for real", assess the project after 18 months of working together and discuss the next steps to come: our summer school aroung interculturality in nursing and simulation which will take place in France in July; and of course finalizing our intellectual outputs!
Programme
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June 3th 2022-Multiplier dissemination event |
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Campus Cappont 0.01 - Auditori del Centre de Cultures i Cooperació Transfronterera |
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09:30-10:00 |
Arrival of participants |
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10:00-10:15 |
Welcoming speech. Montserrat Gea Sanchez, Head of Health professionals, Catalonian Government |
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10:15-11:15 |
Presentation of Care for Europe Project by all project managers: Michael Faure, Regional Institute of Social and Nursing Education of the French Red Cross - Project manager Erica Briones, University of Lleida – Project manager dr. habil Orsolya Máté, University of Pécs – Project manager Niina Glerean, Laurea University of Applied Sciences - Project manager |
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11:15-11:30 |
Coffee break |
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11:30-12:50 |
Round table: Multiculturalism in clinical nursing practice Laura Visiers Jímenez and Isabel Baeza Monedero, San Rafael University center of Antonio de Nebrija University Josep María Gutierrez, University of Lleida- University Hospital Arnau de Vilanova Ignacio Peña Ruiz y Cristina Arcas, Salud entre culturas-Hospital Ramón y Cajal, Madrid. |
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13:00-14:15 |
Lunch break |
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Campus Cappont Rooms 0.01, 0.18 and 0.017 |
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14:15-16:30 |
Professional workshops on the intellectual outputs of the Care For Europe project project
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16:30-17:00 |
Closure of the event. Anabel Fernández, Professional Nursing College of Lleida.
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Care for Europe Erasmus+ KA2 project aims to internationalise nursing courses through a better integration of incoming nursing students during their clinical placements. In the project, digital pedagogical material will be produced to help international nursing exchange students orientate to their student exchange and clinical placement in a new country and culture. The digital pedagogical material will be created in co-operation with partner countries and higher education institutions as well as relevant stakeholders such as nurse educators, nurses and nursing exchange students. The Care for Europe project is coordinated by the French Red Cross IRFSS Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (France) and the project partners are University of Pécs (Hungary), University of Lleida (Spain) and Laurea University of Applied Sciences (Finland).
One of the pedagogical materials, produced in the project, is a massive open online course (MOOC) that aims to introduce the concept of cultural competence to the nursing exchange students and to orientate them to clinical placements in nursing education in Finland, France, Hungary and Spain. The MOOC’s theoretical structure has been co-created with the project partners, and the content of the MOOC is based on literature reviews in each content area that were recognized relevant.
The MOOC includes seven study modules. The first module is an orientation module where the nursing exchange student gets instructions for the MOOC. In the second module, students can introduce themselves and their country to other students. In the third module students reflect their own personal values and beliefs to be more aware of their own cultural background. Students also learn to understand the basic principles for developing cultural competences and critically examine the concepts such as ethnocentricity and stereotyping. The fourth module provides country specifics information about nursing profession and nursing education, which will help students to integrate better to the new environment and to the clinical placement. The fifth study module focuses on mentoring practices and practical issues in clinical placements, and for example, helps nursing exchange students to formulate the learning goals for clinical placement. In the sixth study module, students get information about the exchange country and local culture. Finally, the seventh module allows students to give feedback about the MOOC.
In the pilot version of the MOOC, the content and assignments were developed on Canvas, which is a web-based learning environment and learning management system that allows educators manage and assess student learning and facilitate collaborative learning. After the piloting stage, the course content will be emerged to ThingLink learning environment, which allows the use of 360 degrees interactive pictures, and for example, virtual tours in the local learning environments. The 360 degrees images will be taken in each project partner country in their nursing learning environments, which would offer the incoming nursing students an opportunity to prepare them better for the clinical placement in the receiving country.
The pilot version of the MOOC was developed for nursing exchange students who are planning a nursing exchange in Finland. The pilot version of the MOOC is being tested in partner countries and the feedback is collected from nursing exchange students, nurse educator and other relevant staff members who are working with nursing exchange students. The content and assignments of the MOOC will be developed further following the results from the piloting stage. Furthermore, the country specific versions of the MOOC will be produced utilizing the feedback from the pilot version.
The MOOC pilot will run until 10th of April 2022 in Finland, France, Hungary and Spain. If you are interested to test the MOOC and help Care for Europe project to develop the MOOC further, please contact us and we will add you in the piloting group.
The results of the MOOC piloting stage will be published in the Care for Europe dissemination event at University of Pécs, Hungary. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter and in LinkedIn.
Photo credit: Ilpo Uusivirta/Laurea
Clinical placements play an essential role in nursing education and clinical environments are becoming increasingly multicultural. It is therefore important to focus educational interventions on better integration into the clinical environment and developing intercultural competencies. To launch our Erasmus+ project for innovation and exchange of good practices, a Training Activity on how to develop the mentoring and integration of nursing students from another culture into a clinical environment was organised online coordinated by Laurea University of Applied Sciences.
On the first day of the Training Activity, the participants gathered to discuss the current situation in their countries and organisations. The objective was also to identify training needs, existing good practices and possible concerns in each country, which was done by creating a teamwork activity around these topics in the first workshop for later use in the project.
On the second training day, the participants had the great pleasure to familiarise themselves with the research findings of professor Kristina Mikkonen and researcher Ashlee Oikarainen from the University of Oulu in Finland. They shared their profound knowledge of the integration of culturally and linguistically diverse nursing students into healthcare organisations as well as their brilliant expertise in cultural competence education for mentors with the participants.
Later in the afternoon on the second training day, the participants had a change to have a workshop on professional language skills for nursing with researcher Inkeri Lehtimaja who provided them with useful tips and recommendations on how to support the students’ foreign language learning during training.
On the third day, there was an interesting opportunity to retrace an Erasmus student’s internship path in the clinical environment of the project coordinator IRFSS AuRA in France, during which the participants could experience through many testimonies how rewarding it can be to have an international trainee on the ward, both from the professionals’ and patients’ perspectives.
On the fourth training day, the participants became familiar with the Hungarian partners, the University of Pécs and PhD Orsolya Máté’s studies on transcultural nursing as well as PhD Klára Simon’s case studies on communicational incidents in health care. The participants could find many similarities in their countries regarding the minorities in health care, such as challenges in communication due to the respect for the elderly and traditional gender roles as well as different health practices that could be avoided by developing mutual understanding.
On the last training day, the participants could travel virtually to Spain to meet several healthcare professionals from the University of Lleida and listen to their testimonies. Near their Igualada campus, there is a very modern 4D Health Innovation Simulation Center, where students can become familiar with clinical practices in a real clinical environment. One of the advantages of this simulation center is that all the situations where actors play the patients’ roles can be recorded and analysed afterwards by students and teachers. The day was a perfect way to conclude the project’s first training activity, which served as a very important starting point for the intellectual outputs and provided the project partners with evidence-based material for their future work.
Language barriers were discussed on many occasions during the training activity, but it was also found that international students often become very close to the patients, which reveals that there are of course more dimensions in communication than just the spoken language. Clinical mentors often found that they learned not just new practices from the international student, but also that they were able to see their own practices and work from a different valuable perspective, and even step out from the healthcare framework they had built around themselves. A very enriching experience in any profession!
The first Training Activity will take place at the start of the project, as it will also aim to unite the partners around the project. It will be intended for lecturers responsible for clinical placements/internships, that is the people who provide the link between an incoming student and their internship structure, or who place incoming students on internships.
On September 14, 2020 Care for Europe kick-off meeting was held online through Zoom. The goals of the meeting were
We also discussed questions partners had regarding the present pandemic situation and how it will affect the project.
In April 2020, the French Red Cross and three European universities decided to partner and to respond to a request for proposals of strategic partnership projects under the Erasmus+ programme. Our project was accepted and, on September 1, 2020, Care for Europe project was officially started.