45 years training nurses for life

We spoke with the directors of the Nursing program as it celebrates more than four decades of training well-rounded professionals. Sandra Patricia Carmona Urueña, director of the Nursing program, told us about the program's achievements and challenges.

What does the tribute they are going to hold consist of?

It consists of a celebration to recognize the trajectory of the program and especially the contributions to the discipline, from care management, education, research and care, that the graduates have made in the region, the country and the world.

This is an opportunity to showcase what we do as the Nursing program at UDEC, considering that the International Council of Nurses and the World Health Organization declared 2020 the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife; we also want to thank all nurses for their work, especially during this pandemic, where the first line of care for COVID-19 is provided by nursing staff, who have given everything for humanity.

What topics will be discussed in the 45th anniversary tribute?

This tribute becomes a recognition of teachers and graduates, in which students will play a fundamental role.

A greeting from the University's Directors is planned, a thanksgiving ceremony in which the presidents of the Nursing Associations will participate, such as the Colombian Association of Nursing Faculties (ACOFAEN), the Collegiate Organization of Nursing (OCE), the National Association of Nurses of Colombia (ANEC), the Colombian Association of Nursing Faculties (ACOFAEN) and the National Technical Council of Nursing (CTNE), in addition to the recognition by the mayor of Girardot and the Health Service Provider Institutions, which are part of the -Teaching-Service- agreement with the University of Cundinamarca.

What challenges does the program face due to COVID-19? How have they overcome them?

As professionals and as nursing students, this health emergency has pushed us to our limits. We have been training to be resilient, drawing on our life experiences. To achieve success in the remote learning we undertook, it was important to consider aspects such as trust, shared responsibility, self-regulation, vital care, and to formulate a purpose based on the lessons learned.

Assessment for learning, focused on the process and its achievements, has been valued. This approach considers the complexity of learning and evaluates content using a variety of techniques and instruments. This is a moment for reflection on vital care, caring for others, the planet, and all of humanity, demonstrating that we are connected in a globalized world and further testing network theory for epidemiological analysis.

Our purpose is to promote meaningful learning using information and communication technologies, to articulate the substantive functions of training and learning, science, technology, research and university social interaction, mediated by information and communication technologies, through strategies such as:

-Teachers and students committed to learning, through training in the use of virtual tools and supported by university welfare programs, computer loans and internet access.

-Internationalization at home, national and international visibility of the program, open lecture, job studies for teachers, forums, dialogic meetings with teachers and students.

-Strengthening the program for monitoring nursing students in training, providing constant support to students and teachers on academic and personal guidance issues for mental health prevention and care, with coverage of 100% students and teachers according to need.

-Education of families in the municipality of Girardot, through the educational strategy for the promotion of health in the face of COVID-19 at home.

-Promotion of healthy lifestyles in older adults, adolescents and young people.

-The Youth and Adolescent Friendly Unit Program continued with mental health nursing care, family planning and sexual health counseling, psychological first aid care, and psycho-guidance in cases of psychoactive substance use.

In the 45 years since the program's creation, mention some achievements

1. Obtaining the first qualified registration in 1989.

2. Twelve cohorts graduated from the specialization in Health Services Management – starting year – 1997.

3. In 1997, she joined the Association of Nursing Schools, serving on the board of directors and remaining a constant presence on the working committees.

4. Classification C of the TATAMASALUD- 2015 group, maintaining the category to date.

5. Categorization of a Junior Research Professor by Colciencias

6. Renewal of the Qualified Registration, November 2014.

7. Authorization as a Training Practice Center of the Service Provider Institutions, in agreement with the University and the Nursing Program, San Rafael Hospital of Fusagasugá, San Rafael Damián Clinic, San Sebastián Clinic, August 2018.

8. Start of outgoing international academic mobility for teachers and students of the 2019 program.

9. Participation of Teachers in the Boards of Directors of the Main Organizational Nursing Bodies in Colombia.

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