Program for North American Mobility in Higher Education
Collaborative Learning Across Borders: Partnering Nursing Students, Faculty and Communities

Nursing Students from Mexico to Visit MU in Cultural Exchange
by Laura Schafer

March 11, 2005
COLUMBIA, Mo. – In today’s world, it is necessary for professionals in all occupations to understand cultural issues throughout the world, and more specifically how their job is performed in other countries. Thanks to the Cultural Expeditions in Nursing course at the Sinclair School of Nursing at the University of Missouri-Columbia students are able to take part in a cultural exchange to help broaden the perspectives of U.S., Canadian and Mexican nursing students.
Eight nursing students from Mexico will arrive in Columbia March 13. Throughout their week at MU they will participate in nursing clinical and lecture classes, experiencing how nurses in the United States contribute to the health-care system, and learn about Midwest culture. They then travel to Jefferson City and St. Louis for more cultural and health care experiences. After their two-week stay, the Mexican exchange students will travel to the University of Iowa in Iowa City for two additional weeks.
With the help of the Department of Education FIPSE North American mobility grant program, students from MU, University of Iowa, Dalhousie University (Canada) and University of Prince Edwards (Canada), and Universidad Autónoma de San Luís Potosí (Mexico) and Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León (Mexico) participate in this cultural exchange program.
Although the exchange is optional, all students in the on-line course learn about the cultures, the governments, the health-care systems and the role of nurses in each of these three countries. By using an international on-line discussion board, the students have personal contact with all the students on the continent that are registered in the class.
“It helps students gain a better understanding of how to care for people who come from different cultures,” says Alice Kuehn, course director and associate professor emeritus of nursing at the MU Sinclair School of Nursing.
In April, two nursing students from Canada will visit the Sinclair School of Nursing. After graduation in May, students from MU will be visiting the universities in Mexico and Canada.