The Establishment of the First International Nursing Education in Finland in the 1990’s
Raij, Katariina (2024)
Laurea-ammattikorkeakoulu
2024
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2024083024557
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2024083024557
Tiivistelmä
The first International Nursing Education (INE) programme in Finland was launched in the autumn 1993 at Espoo College of Health Care and Social Welfare. The aim was to develop a diploma-level nursing degree programme for polytechnic-level education. The INE programme was important in the development of bachelor’s level nursing education at Espoo-Vantaa Polytechnic (EVAMK), later known as Laurea University of Applied Sciences (UAS). In spring 2024 the programme’s 30th anniversary was celebrated at Laurea.
The current challenges faced by the Finnish healthcare system are probably more demanding than ever. This is partly because of the lack of professional nurses, and international nursing education holds great potential for educating more healthcare professionals. Here, I discuss the initial phases leading to the establishment of the INE programme and revisit the programme’s development over the decades. The fundamental idea behind the programme has always been a genuine interaction between academic nursing science and clinical practice.
The current challenges faced by the Finnish healthcare system are probably more demanding than ever. This is partly because of the lack of professional nurses, and international nursing education holds great potential for educating more healthcare professionals. Here, I discuss the initial phases leading to the establishment of the INE programme and revisit the programme’s development over the decades. The fundamental idea behind the programme has always been a genuine interaction between academic nursing science and clinical practice.