University of Gävle collaborates with Tanzania and Ethiopia in Nursing Education

For two weeks, the University of Gävle has hosted four guest lecturers in health sciences from Tanzania and Ethiopia. Together with faculty from Gävle, they have co-taught a course they developed collaboratively: "Workplace Violence in Healthcare Professions."

– I am very grateful to be here. This collaboration is important for my university, and we learn from each other. There are many differences between our countries; we are a low-income nation, so there are cultural as well as economic differences. This exchange is also valuable and inspiring for my own teaching, says Loveluck Mwasha (MSc) from The Aga Khan University in Tanzania.

Teaching in a Self-Developed Course

For two weeks, the lecturers from Ethiopia and Tanzania visited the University of Gävle, co-teaching a health sciences course: "Workplace Violence in Healthcare Professions." The course is open to both Swedish and international students. This is the first time the course is offered, and it was developed by the lecturers themselves. For the lecturers, it was a positive experience to finally meet in person and discuss course-related issues with students participating online from Sweden, Tanzania, and Ethiopia.

“Important to Build Bridges Beyond Sweden”

The course "Workplace Violence in Healthcare Professions" was developed by Malin Jordal, Docent in Health Sciences at the University of Gävle, and her colleague Elisabet Eriksson, Docent in Health Sciences, together with the lecturers from Tanzania and Ethiopia.

– It is important to build bridges beyond Sweden. We need to meet physically too, not just online. Having them here for two whole weeks means a lot, Malin Jordal says.

Erasmus+ Project Enables the Exchange

The lecturers from Wolaita Sodo University in Ethiopia and Aga Khan University in Tanzania were able to visit the University of Gävle and collaborate thanks to co-financing from the Erasmus+ International Credit Mobility (KA171) project, which is funded by the European Union. Next autumn, nursing students from Tanzania and Ethiopia are expected to come to the University of Gävle for an exchange.

Text and photo: Marie Hägg Zetterlund