By Dr. Lisa Rauch, Director, The Valley Foundation School of Nursing

On March 14th, seven nursing students from Miyazaki Prefectural Nursing University in Japan visited The Valley Foundation School of Nursing on a Study Abroad program. It is a study-abroad program where students earn three units by participating in the program and completing course assignments. This program has been on hold for four years due to the pandemic, and it restarted this year.

The visiting students were invited to attend the Nursing Health Assessment and Skills II course where they participated with SJSU nursing students led by Dr. Renee Bilner Garcia, a lecturer in the School of Nursing, in a hands-on Tracheostomy competency activity. The visiting students explained that they are first- and second-year students, and many have not been in a hospital setting at this point of their education. They were excited to learn that SJSU students get the opportunity to participate in clinical sites in their first semester, and the level of hands-on experience they participate in the first and second year of the nursing program. The visiting students visited all the simulation labs where they saw the advanced innovation of safe nursing practice and were excited to observe the mannequin’s ability to communicate. We were invited to also bring SJSU students back to Japan to visit the affiliated nursing school campus and learn about how the nursing program is different in their country.

Coordinator of the visit: Junko Linafelter
Email: junko.linafelter@sjsu.edu
Coordinator of the SJSU study abroad program at Miyazaki Prefectural Nursing University in Japan