Nursing professor presents at West African conference

Dressed in academic ceremonial garb, Rosaline Olade, Ph.D., third from left, visits with colleagues and students on a recent trip to West Africa.

Among the most rewarding career experiences for a professor is to see one’s colleagues and students progress in their chosen fields. UNMC’s Rosaline Olade, Ph.D., recently had the opportunity to experience that when she went to Abuja, the capitol of Nigeria, in Western Africa, where she had a major role in a nursing conference.

Dr. Olade, associate professor in UNMC’s College of Nursing, presented a keynote address at the West African College of Nursing Conference in March.

The West African College of Nursing, a regional part of the Commonwealth Federation of Nurses, is a forum for nursing leaders in West African countries. Dr. Olade’s presentation, titled “Reforms in Nursing Education and Practice: Which Way Forward?” discussed various aspects of nursing, including a model she developed that translates nursing research into practice.

“When I was contacted via e-mail to be the keynote speaker, I thought, ‘How did they find me? I’ve been out of that country for 12 years,’ ” she said. “With everything on the Internet, these days, you can’t hide I guess. They find you all over the world.”

Dr. Olade, who also is UNMC assistant dean for graduate studies and assistant vice chancellor for academic affairs, was honored to speak at such a prestigious conference.

“I’ve been teaching at the university level since 1975,” she said. “Some of my former students now are leaders in health administration, while some are nursing professors, vice presidents of hospitals and such. They all were flocking to me and I felt like I was in a reunion. It was very exciting.”

The conference included a ceremony for nursing leaders who were newly inducted into the nursing fellowship. During that time, Dr. Olade, a founding member of the fellowship, sat among representatives of the president of Nigeria and other African ministers of health.

Rosaline Olade, Ph.D., far left, participates in a nursing fellowship induction. Dr. Olade sat on the high table among representatives of the president of Nigeria and other African ministers of health.

While in Africa, she also was interviewed by a national news television station in Abuja about the proposed reforms in nursing practice in African nations.

The visit to her home country also gave Dr. Olade a chance to reflect on the accomplishments she helped shape in nursing education in Africa. She has worked at the University of Ibadan in a variety of roles – most recently as head of nursing at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, from 1990-1992, before she relocated to the United States due to the political situation in Nigeria at that time.

She helped launch a master’s degree in nursing at the University of Ibadan and got the government’s approval for the doctoral program during her headship at the school. “When I started nursing in Nigeria, there were only nursing diploma programs in the country, now the first doctoral nursing student will graduate from the University of Ibadan this summer,” Dr. Olade said.