Journal of Korean Academic Society of Nursing Education  2016;22(2):220-227

doi:10.5977/jkasne.2016.22.2.220

A Study on the Curriculum of Global Health Education.

Kyung Sook CHOI 1 ; Hack Sun KIM ; So Young LEE ; Anne DRESSEL ; Loren W GALVAO ; Myunghee JUN

Affiliations

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Keywords

Global health; Healthcare disparities; Nursing education; Transcultural nursing

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study aimed to understand current global health education and suggest its future direction for Korean undergraduate nursing students. METHODS: After reviewing literature to identify key concepts applicable to global health nursing curricula, the authors analyzed global health curricula from 98 nursing colleges by using a framework that was developed for this study. RESULTS: Among the 201 nursing colleges, 98 (48.8%) schools offered one or more global health-related courses. The titles of these courses were divided into two categories: Multiculturalism and international nursing. Multicultural courses were offered mainly for freshmen (40.5%) or sophomore students (40.5%), whereas international nursing courses were offered mainly for senior students (35.9%). These courses trained nursing students to be culturally competent in providing nursing care for immigrants or foreign travelers living in South Korea. CONCLUSIONS: It is evident that interest in global health education is growing in South Korea. However, the scope and content of global health education needs to be broadened beyond multiculturalism and international nursing so that it can prepare nursing students to promote global health equity, reduce global health disparities, and work competently with globally-focused organizations.