In the course of their studies UPEI Nursing students have an opportunity to collaborate with a variety of both traditional and non-traditional professionals and organizations in the provision of health care.
For two years in a row, Nursing students from UPEI took advantage of such an opportunity by completing internships in a small town called Kiirua in Kenya, Africa. In 2009, Cheryl Edmunds, Marley Bruce, Rianne Carragher, and Ashley Caulier worked at St. Theresa’s Mission Hospital for 2½ months, carrying out various nursing duties. In 2010, James Sullivan was one of four students to visit the same location.
Says Dr. Kim Critchley, Dean of Nursing: "I was with them for one week to get them established in their placements. The HIV/AIDS outreach clinic is funded by the UPEI School of Nursing. The area has come to know our school and our students. The students do great work."
While the students were working at St. Theresa’s Hospital, a young HIV-positive woman gave birth to a small but healthy baby girl. But the baby could not be breast-fed by an HIV-positive mother, and the family was unable to buy formula. With money that was raised by the 4th-year nursing class, the students purchased a goat for the family to provide milk for the baby.
Rianne Carragher described her experience in the following excerpt:
“I am a fourth-year nursing student from UPEI. There are four interns completing this placement in Kenya, and we are all from the same nursing class at UPEI. The experience has been phenomenal, and we have learned so much about nursing with limited resources and technology. We are doing our placement at St. Theresa’s Mission Hospital, and staying at a compound on the hospital’s grounds. The people here are so welcoming, and continue to make an effort to make us feel at home and comfortable each day."
“It is amazing to see the role of a nurse in a country halfway across the world from Canada, and even more amazing are the similarities. Nursing in Kenya is focused primarily on effective communication, caring, empathizing, being genuine, being competent in your skills — all the same qualities that one must have while nursing in Canada."
“We are working five-day weeks, and rotating throughout different areas of the hospital. Mondays through Wednesdays we are right on the hospital grounds, and working on a maternity ward, medical surgical ward, or in a maternal clinic, and when the opportunity arises, we attend surgeries. Thursdays, we all head out on HIV/AIDS outreach with a Registered Nurse from the hospital, as well as a client here who is HIV-positive. During these Thursdays, we go to different communities — some areas with a lot of poverty — and go door-to-door and educate families about HIV/AIDS. We talk about how it is transmitted, treatment options, and medical expenses. Many times it is difficult for us to communicate as the residents mostly speak Ki Swahili, or another mother tongue, but being there to witness the education between the nurse, client, and residents is amazing. Fridays we visit a Children’s Home with over 80 children ranging from ages 0-5. After 5 years old, they are sent back into the community with the hopes that someone will care for them. We mostly work with the infants, and help to bathe, feed, and play with them. The home is understaffed, and although playing with them is no chore for us, it is a big help to the staff."
“John van Leeuwen, a veterinarian from UPEI’s Atlantic Veterinary College, who also works with Farmers Helping Farmers, visited, and came to the Children’s Home with us. He educated some of their staff on how to improve the quality of life for their animals, therefore benefiting the Home with more milk and food for the children."
“We are so fortunate to have this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and none of this would have been possible without the support from many Islanders and organizations.”
