Around the globe the number of older adults is increasing as the life expectancy tends to be longer. Although many nursing programs provide education related to caring for older adults, the connection to and utilization of gerontological knowledge within nursing is vague and still not well understood. The Double Degree Bilingual Nursing Program (DDBNP) is a collaboration between two universities, one in Thailand and one in Sweden, where the nursing students from the Thai University, study their fourth and final year of the program at the university in Sweden. Some of these DDBNP students may become the future leaders of health care in Thailand. While in Sweden, the DDBNP students study a course in gerontology and the fundamentals of nursing care for older adults together with other international students. Within the gerontology course, lecturers/doctoral students in nursing from the Thai University were invited to participate as co-teachers in the course, thus the Eastern and Western cultural views on aging as well as on pedagogy were combined. The first batch of students attending DDBNP have graduated and have now been working as registered nurses (RNs) for more than a year. By interviewing these RNs from the DDBNP, we will be able to explore their utilization of the gerontological knowledge that they gained from the course, and see how they are applying this knowledge in their work as nurses. The study thus aims to explore the Double Degree nurses’ experiences with implementing gerontological knowledge within nursing care. Research designs: A narrative qualitative inquiry will be applied in this study. This inquiry is able to explore what the gerontology course have meant to the nursing students and how have they had use of the gerontological knowledge in their nursing careers. Data collection:In-depth interviews will be performed with 10 general nurses in Thailand. The participants graduated from the Double Degree Bilingual Nursing Program and had participated in a gerontology course at a Swedish university. Data analysis:Transcribed interviews will be analyzed using content analysis.
Objective 1: After attending this activity, participants will be able to discuss how gerontological knowledge is being utilized by the Double Degree Bilingual Nursing Program graduates within their work in general nursing environments.
Objective 2: The participants will also be able to discuss and share experiences about challenges and opportunities implementing gerontological knowledge within nursing care.