FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 9, 2007
WHO and Honor Society of Nursing Lead Development of Global Standards for Initial Nursing and Midwifery Education
Nurse Migration Calls for Global Educational Standards
BANGKOK (January 9, 2007) – More than 30 international leaders in nursing and midwifery convened 6-8 December 2006, in Bangkok, Thailand, to initiate the development of global standards for basic nursing and midwifery education to address patient safety and quality of care issues that result from the large-scale migration of health care providers. This effort, which is being led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International, aims to establish initial education standards for the estimated 11 million nurses and midwives worldwide and ultimately improve patient outcomes by creating a better educated health care workforce.
“Nursing education around the world is highly variable, taking place in a myriad of programs at the secondary school level, hospitals, technical institutes and institutions of higher education,” said WHO Chief Scientist for Nursing and Midwifery and Co-Chair of the Planning Group Jean Yan, PhD. “The lack of global education standards creates issues for quality care, the immigrating nurse, the potential employing agency and the recipient country. Over the decades, organizations and governments have developed statements, regulations and standards for nursing practice and education. Many, however, only apply to a specific global region or country. Our aim is to draw on existing standards and the expertise and experience of global health care leaders to develop a single set of educational standards to be adopted and implemented worldwide.”
During the three-day meeting in Bangkok, representatives from WHO Collaborating Centers, schools of nursing, nursing associations, credentialing organizations, councils of deans and nursing alliances, provided input and developed key elements for proposed standards in five areas:
- Educational Program Admission Criteria
- Educational Program Development Requirements
- Educational Program Content Components
- Nursing and Midwifery Faculty Qualifications
- Nursing and Midwifery Program Graduate Qualifications
“Experts in nursing education have little to no opportunity to convene on a global basis,” said Honor Society of Nursing Director and Co-Chair of the Planning Group Karen Morin, RN, DSN. “The result is an absence of global standards. Our hope is to effectively employ a consensus strategy to define the minimum requirements for nursing education and eliminate this disparity in standards. These standards will serve as the foundation for program and policy development, as well as the basis for advanced education standards.”
Next steps in the development of these standards include a completion of a comprehensive literature review on existing standards, issuance of an interim report, the creation of the proposed recommendations and standards, and broad circulation and review of the proposed standards. Targeted completion of the final report is scheduled for January 2008.
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About the World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is the United Nations specialized agency for health. It was established on 7 April 1948. WHO's objective, as set out in its Constitution, is the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health. Health is defined in WHO's Constitution as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
WHO is governed by 193 Member States through the World Health Assembly. The Health Assembly is composed of representatives from WHO's Member States. The main tasks of the World Health Assembly are to approve the WHO programme and the budget for the following biennium and to decide major policy questions. More information about the WHO can be found online at www.who.int.
About the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International
The Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to improve the health of people worldwide through leadership and scholarship in practice, education and research. Founded in 1922, the Honor Society of Nursing has inducted more than 400,000 members in 114 countries. Members include practicing nurses, instructors, researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs and others. The society’s 446 chapters are located at 543 institutions of higher education throughout Australia, Botswana, Brazil, Canada, Ghana, Hong Kong, Japan, Kenya, Malawi, Mexico, the Netherlands, Pakistan, South Africa, South Korea, Swaziland, Sweden, Taiwan, Tanzania and the United States. More information about the honor society can be found online at www.nursingsociety.org.