Taiwanese Nursing Students Visit FPB for Nursing Skills and Educational Training Program
Spend one month attending FPB classes, clinicals, and service learning sessions
Posted 3/7/2011
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Chang Gung Institute of Technology Department of Nursing visitors with FPB School of Nursing faculty and staffBack row, L to R: Director of International Health Programs Samira Hussney, Yu-Ting (Debbie) Yang, Dean May Wykle, Yun-Chen (Cherry) Hsu, Meng-Chia (Cathy) Chan, FPB Professor Diana Morris, Yi-Chen (Julie) Chiang, and Chang Gung Professor Emily Liou.
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Continuing the FPB School of Nursing's tradition of hosting international students for extensive training programs, Taiwan's Chang Gung Institute of Technology
Department of Nursing sent eight undergraduate nursing students and a faculty member to FPB to engage in an intensive month-long educational visit incorporating a wide variety of nursing-related educational and clinical activities.
"The purpose of our visit is to increase my students' international experiences in healthcare, particularly in the clinical setting," says FPB PhD alum Emily Liou, PhD, RN, now a professor of nursing at the Taiwanese school. "Simulation education is a very important element in nursing education, and we have looked at FPB as a model from which we developed our own simulation and clinical-based curriculum in September 2010. Our interactions with various FPB faculty have been incredibly helpful."
Dr. Liou, who received her PhD degree from FPB in 2007, brought along eight of her best and brightest undergraduate senior students, all of whom are graduating in May. They included Meng-Chia (Cathy) Chan, Yi-Chen (Julie) Chiang, Yun-Chen (Cherry) Hsu, Yu-Chun (Victoria) Liao, Yen-Tso (Felicia) Liu, Li-Ting (Alexis) Peng, Wan-Ju (Carol) Yang, and Yu-Ting (Debbie) Yang. This was their very first visit to the United States, and they embraced their new experiences with enthusiasm, often struck at the cultural differences between the United States and Taiwan.
"I came here with an interest in learning in a different kind of healthcare environment," says Victoria Liao, who plans to take up acute care and emergency nursing. "Our school is going to be getting a mannequin similar to FPB's SimMan later this year, but I'll have graduated already. That's why coming here was a great opportunity to work with the various simulators in FPB's Learning Resource Center (LRC)."
Alexis Peng, who served as the student group leader during their visit, is interested in critical care nursing and hopes to work both in the ICU and in the classroom. "My very first impression in coming here was the differences on display in the American diet," she says. "I also noticed the security measures in place at institutions like Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. In Taiwan, security is not so serious an issue, so our hospitals are pretty much open to anyone."
"I loved seeing the cute and colorful environments at Rainbow," says Felicia Liu, who wants to be an acute care nurse. "The nurses there wore different color uniforms than we are used to seeing, and that really helps to brighten the atmosphere, especially for children."
"Another thing that I noticed at the children's hospital was that parents could leave their children there, and then come and go," Julie Chiang says. "Taiwanese parents have to remain there with their children all day." After graduation, Julie plans to go into longterm care nursing and hospice, and possibly oncology.
Another clinical location the Taiwanese students visited was McGregor Home, which is a longterm assisted living nursing home. Cathy Chan, whose nursing interest is critical care, says,"We got to go into the dementia unit, where the patients have their own private rooms. That was really a surprise. We also watched a music therapy session, in which the therapist was playing an electric guitar!"
Debbie Yang was excited to shadow FPB students on their clinicals, but she took particular interest in using the starting IV simulator in the LRC. "Roleplaying and simulations are not something we've gotten to do much in Taiwan," she says. "Instead, we mostly have to memorize lists of procedures and information. I'd love to see more roleplaying incorporated in nursing classes back at home."
Regarding the classes they attended at FPB, all the students agreed that the professor-student dynamic here was much different than what they were accustomed to in Taiwan. "It was surprising for me that, in a nursing lecture here at FPB, the professor was throwing out questions, and the students were answering right away," says Alexis. "Typical lectures in Taiwan are much more one-sided, with the teacher doing almost all the talking, and the students all acting shy and quiet as they take notes."
Carol Yang, who wants to be a critical care nurse, agrees. "Critical thinking is readily on display here, in both the faculty and the students," she says. "We seldom engage in such kinds of discourse at home, but I think it's really important, since students need to be able to think more on their feet, particularly in critical care and emergency situations."
"The nursing faculty-student conversation is crucial," Julie adds. "In April, we'll have a special practicum before our May graduation. Coming here gave me a great lesson in how thinking fast, asking questions, and interacting with other nurses on the floor improves the overall experience for everyone, even the primary care nurses and doctors."
Director of FPB's International Health Programs Samira Hussney facilitated the signing of FPB's Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Chang Gung Institute of Technology School of Nursing in 2010. She also coordinated the Taiwanese students' visit with the assistance of Associate Dean of the Undergraduate Program and BSN Program Director Dr. Marilyn Lotas as well as BSN Assistant Director Gayle Petty. Ms. Hussney is currently preparing for FPB's next international training program later in March, in which large nursing faculty and student contingents from two different universities in Japan will be taking part in many of the same kinds of rigorous educational activities as those experienced by the Taiwanese guests.
