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Penn Nursing Partnerships in India to Develop Models of Care
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September 15, 2009, Volume 56, No. 03

Penn Nursing is partnering with an Indian non-profit to develop models of nursing care in rural India. As part of Penn Nursing’s current partnership with IKP Center for Technologies in Public Health (ICTPH),  a non-profit research organization in India that aims to develop models of nursing care to address health problems in rural parts of the country, the two organizations recently hosted an invitational conference focused on how to develop nursing, NP, and primary care practice in rural India to improve outcomes. The conference, Alternative Human Resources for Health in India: Innovative Models for Improving Primary Healthcare, was held in India on August 21-22 and was attended by the regional CDC officer and other notable dignitaries.

 The conference concluded with the following consensus statement:

“The time is now for India to fully develop opportunities for nurses, doctors to advance their abilities to provide care in rural settings. This can be attained by additional training and career opportunities for promotions for nurses and doctors who are supported by technicians and managers. This encompasses the need for the formulation of an alternative health workforce for rural and underserved urban India.”

The development of APNs and NPs would provide much-needed care in a country that has never relied heavily on the nursing model. Penn Nursing holds a year-long partnership with ICTPH to explore utilizing advanced practice nurses to deliver healthcare in remote rural populations.

“To improve public and maternal health, nurses must have the opportunity to practice to their full capacity and advance their skills through expanded education and training as nurse practitioners who work with community health workers and the full health care team,” said Penn Nursing Professor and Associate Dean for Practice and Community Affairs Eileen Sullivan-Marx. Dr. Sullivan-Marx is an international NP leader with ICTPH and delivered the keynote address, Nurse Practitioners: The International Experience.

Dr. Zeena Johar, president of ICTPH, added, “75% of Indian medical practitioners are positioned at urban locations and 72% of the Indian population resides in rural locations, highlighting the overarching need for human resource innovation for delivering health.”

 

Almanac - September 15, 2009, Volume 56, No. 03