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Roxie Ann Thompson Isherwood, RN, PhD(c) and Ardene Robinson Vollman, RN PhD. Faculty of Nursing, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive NW, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada, (403)220-6267, isherwoo@ucalgary.ca
Over the last decade, nursing education has been challenged by the need to extend the notion of community within nursing programs, by the pressure to keep pace with technological advances in higher education, and by the diminishing supply of experienced nurse educators. A recently published text in the area of community stimulated the authors to examine the possibility of creating a companion website that would act as a framework for mentoring faculty and practice colleagues and for enhancing connections between academic and service settings in the area of community/public health. Within the website structure, the intentional use of community/public health principles formed the basis for the development of relationships embedded in educational and practice communities. This presentation will illustrate the community framework that articulates the concepts of population focus, participation, social justice and equity, and accountability within the website design. Based on this framework, the mentoring and connecting approaches taken within the website will be discussed in terms of structures, processes, and outcomes as developed and experienced within the initial months of use by nurse educators. Implications for the development of faculty and practitioner competence and conversation within the contexts of content expertise, pedagogical understanding, clinical applications, and community building in education and practice relationships will be explored. Finally, the audience will be engaged in a discussion of the relevance of the website design, community framework, and educational strategies for their own academic and practice settings and for their particular development needs.
Learning Objectives:
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.