Adult Nursing Students Visit US University

In September 2017, five adult nursing students and Andrew Southgate, Senior Lecturer in Adult Nursing, visited Mount Mercy University in Cedar Rapids, a small city in the Mid-West State of Iowa. 

This is the first visit to Mount Mercy by the School of Nursing. A wide variety of activities were arranged, which included joining seminar sessions in the university and visiting a range of care settings across Iowa.

We learnt about the complexities of the US Healthcare Insurance System and found out that having no health insurance doesn’t mean a person will not be able to receive Emergency Care. There were visits to St. Luke’s Hospital in Cedar Rapids and the brand new Iowa City Paediatric Hospital that is part of the prestigious University of Iowa Hospital and Medical School. Differences in healthcare provision were noticed such as spacious rooms, a rehabilitation department with a full size car and state of the art exercise machines.

Another visit to the Jones Regional Care Centre allowed the group to observe services provided to the community by a small rural hospital, which also provided emergency care. There was also time spent at a Hospice House, a Public Health Centre and a Care Home for Seniors. These all provided excellent opportunities’ to compare and contrast similarities and differences in care provision between the USA and the UK.

One of the many highlights of the visit was the time spent at the Cedar Rapid Free Clinic. This is a facility where care is provided for those who, for a variety of reasons do not have, or can’t afford the excess on their healthcare insurance. The commitment of the team to deliver quality care using donated resources was inspirational.

Seminars attended included a nursing session focused on immunisations for children. During the session we participated in scenario based group work with the Mount Mercy students. Another seminar we joined was a Team Working and Communication module attended by students studying subjects such as Journalism and Business. This was an excellent opportunity to network and engage in discussion with students from other disciplines.

To end the week, we joined final year nursing students for simulation activities. This was a fantastic and enjoyable learning experience for us and it highlighted again some of differences in the role of the Registered Nurse. The students found the trip to be a valuable experience. One commented that:

“Being able to experience the US model of healthcare and teaching for nurses was hugely enriching and eye opening, common beliefs that I had held on the insurance system were proven to be incorrect and allowed for interesting reflections on our own NHS healthcare and seeing the strengths and weaknesses from the outside.”

Another recalled that:

“Everybody we met wanted to help others, in one of the hospitals there was a rehab unit. There was a cooker in the unit and this had been brought with money that a few young girls had raised selling lemonade by the road side. That for me was really inspiring.”

Plans are now being made for a return to Mount Mercy visit in September 2018 and to prepare for Mount Mercy to return to the UK in January 2019.