Unlocking the potential of Nursing Education puts the learner in the centre: Educating the ideal nurse for Africa

Abstract

Meeting the quality standards of higher education and the professional regulator as well as responding to the national health ambitions of government is a huge challenge for nursing educational institutions in resource constrained environments such as South Africa. However, it also offers an opportunity to revolutionise nursing education discarding legacies of the past. Unlocking the potential of nursing education requires student centered approaches that respect indigenous ways of knowing, the decolonisation of curricula and commitment to meeting the needs of the nation. Nurse leadership is required to find ways to align curriculum development with the current and future trends in the profession. In this paper suggestions are made and new approaches proposed on how to educate the ideal nurse for Africa. Such new curricula will produce a balanced, integrated nurse practitioner who embodies a deeper theoretical and clinical competency responding positively to the current landscape of education and training for quality health service delivery. Strategies for innovation are proposed since it’s important to translate theory into practice. Leadership is required in the health sector so that students and professionals will have the courage to embrace the future on African terms and together find ways to let go of the legacy of the past.

Keywords: Nursing education, indigenous knowledge systems, innovation, leadership, curriculum