The adherence of five nursing schools in Africa to regional educational standards: An evaluation report

Abstract

Background: Programme review has been used to evaluate and formulate conclusions about the strengths and effectiveness of programmes. This article presents findings of the internal and external programme reviews which were conducted in five nursing schools in the African region. These reviews were guided by educational standards developed by the three World Health Organisation Collaborating Centres for Nursing and Midwifery Development in Africa with the support of the World Health Organisation African Regional Office. Objectives: To establish the adherence of five nursing schools in Africa to regional educational standards. Methods: In-depth case analysis was conducted, with each school forming a case. Data sources were all stakeholders and data were collected through interviews, focus groups, document analysis and observations. Results: The results reflected diversity in educational programmes and adherence to some of the educational standards. The educational programmes were striving to address the needs of the respective societies; curricula were coherent, with significant clinical exposure; there were productive international partnerships from which schools benefited significantly; and stakeholders were involved in addressing problems related to education and training. Weaknesses included inadequate teaching resources, a limited pool of suitably qualified academic staff, a lack of adequately prepared mentors and role models in the clinical areas; as well as a lack of specialist training and limited options within programmes if graduates wanted to specialise in certain areas.