Partnerships for building leadership capacity for nurse educators in sub-saharan Africa

Abstract

Capacity development for educators of health profession students in low-income countries is an essential contributor to improving health outcomes. A multi-stakeholder partnership was created to offer a leadership programme for nurse educators in Sub-Saharan Africa. Partners were the Johnson and Johnson Foundation (grant funder), the Foundation for Professional Development, a private higher education institution, (coordinator and monitoring and evaluation provider), and the Association for Health Professions Education and Leadership (AHPEL), an NGO and community of practice with education providers affiliated to public universities in South Africa. AIM : The aim of the study was to evaluate the success of the programme. LITERATURE REVIEW : Partnerships between stakeholders from different sectors, public and private, are acknowledged as important contributors to leveraging resources for capacity development in health professions education. (World Health Organisation, 2013) Examples of successful partnerships in Sub-Saharan Africa include the FAIMER/SAFRI fellowships (Frantz et al, 2015; 2019; Keiller et al, 2023), MEPI and AFREHEALTH programmes (Omaswa et al, 2017; 2018). RESEARCH DESIGN METHODOLOGY : Sixteen fellows were recruited, representing seven Sub-Saharan countries. The 18-month fellowship covered key aspects of educational methodology with a strong focus on leadership. Hybrid delivery included contact sessions, synchronous online engagements and a quality improvement project (QIP). Evaluation included pre-and post-fellowship surveys and participant reflections. PRELIMINARY FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION : The results of the surveys showed that fellows’ self-perceptions of competence and confidence improved in all domains of Education, Research, Leadership and Academic Citizenship. They developed a stronger sense of self and community through engaging with their peers, mentors, and leaders in the nursing profession. Tangible impact was noted in their institutions after completion of their QIP, which created new opportunities for growth. The fellowship helped to develop a community of practice of future nurse educator leaders that can be added to the network in the region. The most significant challenges were access to passports, visas and travel funding, resulting in more than half of the fellows being unable to complete. CONCLUSIONS : Fellows bolstered their leadership qualities over the 18-month period and developed new skills which supported the value of the partnership approach. The shortcomings will be addressed in future collaborative endeavours.