Nursing students enriched by China experience

UNMC College of Nursing students with some of the Chinese nurses they worked with at Renji Hospital in Shanghai. In the back row from the left are UNMC students, Shannon Miklo of Omaha, and Jennifer Clark, second from left, Lincoln division. From far right are Mikaela Sandhorst and Ashley Havlena of the Lincoln Division.

Four UNMC senior nursing students spent three weeks in China expanding their knowledge about nursing and Chinese culture.

The students — Jennifer Clark, Ashley Havlena, Mikaela Sandhorst and Shannon Miklo — had to work at a faster pace to get all their assignments done before they left. But it was worth it, they said.

And thanks to a blog set up by Myra Schmaderer, nursing instructor at the UNMC College of Nursing Lincoln Division, the students shared their China experiences with others.

“I believe we are all more culturally sensitive after participating in this activity,” Schmaderer said. “In addition, we learned differences in health care practices in China. It seems the U.S. is ahead in some practices and behind in others.”

Blog link View more about the students’ experiences in China and photos from the trip.

As part of the rich experience, the students also received credit for some of the clinical work they participated in at Renji Hospital in Shanghai.

Havlena, who attends the Lincoln division, said the trip provided experiences to improve her nursing skills and helped her become more culturally competent.

“In nursing school, we learn a lot about different cultures and their views on health care, however, I believe that that information doesn’t stick until a person actually is immersed in that culture,” Havlena said.

The highlight of the trip was being able to participate in the care, she said.

From left: Jennifer Clark, Ashley Havlena and Mikaela Sandhorst take a boat ride on the Huangpu River in Shanghai.

“All of the nurses and doctors were very welcoming and willing to take time to explain to us how medicine and nursing are practiced throughout China,” Havlena said. “They also were very interested in how nursing is carried out in the U.S.”

Since the college’s China exchange program started in 2006, Chinese students and faculty have visited UNMC in the spring and College of Nursing students and faculty have gone to China in the fall.

Sheila Ryan, Ph.D., director of international nursing education programs at the College of Nursing, spearheads the program and said it helps broaden the college’s educational programs.