Project Lauded for Innovative Instruction

Since it’s inception, the Bangladesh Health Project has relied on the generosity of overseas volunteer faculty who have taught students, developed courses and mentored local faculty.  Many of the volunteers originally visited IUBAT as nursing students themselves, through the arrangements that their own school had with the Project.  Some students came solo, others in groups with an instructor.

One such academic partnership was with the University of Vermont (UVM) through Professor Rycki Maltby. The relationship between the two institutions was featured in the book, Innovative Teaching Strategies in Nursing and Related Health Professions by authors Martha Bradshaw and Arlene Lowenstein. The immersion course, offered to senior nursing students, was highlighted as a unique learning experience and noteworthy for instructors as a teaching example. IUBAT and the Bangladesh Health Project welcome future partnerships with academic institutions and any students that may have an interest in getting involved.

The Bangladesh Health Project has accommodated many volunteers in our guest house.  We are grateful for volunteer faculty, as we could not have succeeded without their assistance in building the scholastic foundation of the Project.  For pictures of the guest house, please check out our Flickr page.

Bangladesh Health Project Plans for 2017

As the Bangladesh Health Project (BHP) progresses, we focus on new priorities and needs. With IUBAT alumni now taking more senior roles as nurse educators and managers, our volunteers offer more mentoring and coaching and less student teaching. Looking ahead, these are our objectives:

1. Provide mentoring support for faculty of IUBAT College of Nursing

BHP has completed mentorship and training of several cohorts of BSN students.  Our next goal is to strengthen nursing faculty capacity.  Through phone contact, e-mail and visiting faculty volunteers, we will assist with program development, classroom teaching, clinical supervision and student evaluation. As feasible, we will continue to supply textbooks and teaching materials. We will provide demonstration lectures for IUBAT nursing students and for staff at our teaching hospital sites.

2. Support IUBAT graduates in their professional development

In recent years, we have supported IUBAT alumni working in hospitals, colleges and NGOs with mentorship for issues related to advanced education, nursing administration and access to technical information. We will continue supporting our graduates as they advance in their careers and undertake leadership roles.

3. Develop resources to promote nurse education in Bangladesh

We will continue to offer textbooks to local nursing colleges, ideally establishing a central library for advanced materials, to be used by faculty and senior hospital staff. We will continue developing our Open Education Resource, an open-source collection of BSN curriculum materials for faculty to use in lesson preparation.

4. Build relationships with colleges and NGOs to improve health services in Bangladesh

We have good relationships with many health care organizations; some are practicum or internship sites for IUBAT, others offer good-quality education or health care services. Most are in Dhaka, while a few are in outlying areas. We will support these agencies as requested, with consultation and educational materials.

5. Support research projects on quality of health education and health services

We will arrange student internships and projects to link local and global researchers. We have the potential to support some applied research projects on quality of health services, particularly for training and mentor-ship in research.

We continue to welcome volunteers, either working from home, or at our guest-house in Dhaka. Please contact us about current opportunities.

Volunteer Faculty Discusses her Unique Role with Project

A recent volunteer, Roslyn Coltheart, answered some questions to allow us to share her experiences as a visitor to Bangladesh and a staff mentor at IUBAT.  Roslyn held a unique volunteer position as she was not an instructor to the nursing students, but rather, a mentor to new permanent faculty at IUBAT.  She is pictured above with faculty members and students at the 71st orientation program for new students (“Fresher”), for spring semester.  In the picture from left to right: Faisal (nursing student), Roslyn, Tutal (IUBAT graduate and now faculty), Khadizia (IUBAT faculty, graduate of armed forces medical college and the first non-IUBAT trained staff), Tahamina (IUBAT graduate and now faculty), Tithi (nursing student), Shoykit (nursing student), Shuvashish (IUBAT graduate and now faculty), and Elma (nursing student).

What were your roles/responsibilities in Bangladesh and when did you become involved with the Bangladesh Health Project?

“I first came across the Bangladesh Health Project in 2013, when I read an article in the American Journal of Nursing. At the time, I had just moved from Australia to Canada but filed the information away for future reference. In early 2015, I applied to volunteer with the Project. Initially hopeful to be there for the September to December 2015 semester, I had to delay due to Canadian immigration difficulties and arrived January 7th 2016, staying until April 16 2016, during spring semester. 

At this time in the Project, six IUBAT graduates had been hired as teachers and I was the first volunteer to join the project, not as a teacher myself but as a mentor for these young teachers. My roles and responsibilities were very autonomous and self directed. My main focus was not to teach, but to help guide the teachers to develop their confidence, teaching styles, assignment setting, exam marking etc. I would sit with teachers before class and help them prepare, join classes and give support, answer questions, join in discussions, read assignments and give feedback on marking. I also accompanied teachers and students to attend clinical placements and updated some old lectures. 

As I was not directly responsible for classes each week, I had more flexibility to travel some parts of Bangladesh whilst there.”

What/where is your current position/role (i.e. are you a practicing nurse, writing/teaching full time?)?

I am an Australian registered nurse and have now been living and working in Canada for 3 years. I graduated in 2004 and have predominantly worked in Emergency in that time frame. I am currently registered in BC and working in Emergency.

Can you share your overall impressions of Bangladesh and your experiences with the Project?

“I had a truly great experience in Bangladesh, I can’t believe the availability of so many different foods! I’m very happy I came across the Project and was able to experience it. I am also happy I came across it in the stage that it was at: during the transition of the graduates into lecturers, rather than as a teacher myself. I found the role interesting, challenging, stimulating and worthwhile, although I had a few challenges along the way! All of the teachers said I made a difference, but a mentee faculty member probably gave me the greatest insight into this when he said something along the lines of, “You may not realize the difference you have made, but we know.” It was also interesting to hear the students talk at the end about things they had learned from having me there – a few off the cuff remarks I made seemed to have made an impact! I have encouraged them all to keep in contact and they are aware I’m happy to help over email when and if they need it.”

Thank you for sharing your insight during a pivotal time during the Project’s development, Roslyn, and it is without doubt that your assistance and guidance has helped strengthen the foundation and shaped the growth of the nursing program at IUBAT.  We’re sure the students and faculty alike can wholeheartedly agree that your influence has been positive and beneficial for the future direction of the Bangladesh Health Project!