2 nursing projects receive Sustainable Development Goals grants

Two School of Nursing research projects were among the eight projects awarded approximately $160,000 by the University of Minnesota Global Programs and Strategy Alliance for projects that align with the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the University’s strategic priorities and needs identified by communities.

Professor Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu, PhD, RN, FAAN, is partnering with Associate Professor Sarah Hoffman, PhD, MPH, RN, on Achieving Gender Equality for Women Experiencing the Deepest Vulnerability: A Focus on Gender-based Violence in the Lives of Childbearing Refugee Women in Dzaleka Refugee Camp, Malawi. The mixed methods study will provide foundational knowledge about the experiences of gender-based violence in the lives of childbearing women living at Dzaleka refugee camp in Malawi. Findings will advance the development of future health care interventions and policies to promote and protect the health of childbearing women survivors of gender-based violence in refugee camps and women resettled in states like Minnesota.

Clinical Associate Professor Dorcas Kunkel, DNP, RN, PHN, CNE, CPHIMS, CDIP, received funding for Assessment of Relevancy of Nurse Practitioner Entry-to-Practice Competencies in the Primary Health Care Systems of Sub-Saharan Africa. The purpose of this research project is to assess the relevancy of an existing set of core competencies for training and practice of advanced practice nurses in primary health care contexts, in particular family nurse practitioners in Liberia and for additional application in sub-Saharan Africa. The project is built upon what was learned in previous educational initiatives in Liberia and will provide information for governmental and non-governmental organizations and boards of nursing to begin to plan for context-relevant, national, graduate level family nurse practitioner curriculum for programs of nursing in universities and colleges. These advanced practice nursing roles can begin to fill the profound gap that exists in the numbers of primary care providers in Liberia and across sub-Saharan Africa.