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Nurse practitioner
students from the Netherlands partner with TWU-Houston
3/02/07
HOUSTON —
When Lillian D. Garcia-Maas, a nursing professor at the University
of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, needed a place for her students
to gain an international perspective on being nurse practitioners,
she immediately thought of Texas Woman’s University.
“I graduated
from TWU in Houston, so I knew my students would be able to
learn a lot about being a nurse practitioner from the exceptional
TWU faculty and students,” Ms. Garcia-Maas, MS, RN,
CEN, said. “Being located in the Texas Medical Center
was also a plus, as it offered students a chance to observe
nurse practitioners in a clinical setting.”
The University
of Rotterdam brought 17 nurse practitioner students and three
faculty members to spend a week TWU’s Nelda C. Stark
College of Nursing in Houston from Feb. 27 to March 2. In
addition to interacting with TWU students and faculty, the
Rotterdam students spent time at several hospitals in the
Texas Medical Center and at other community clinics in Houston
observing nurse practitioners in clinical practice.
“Students
from both universities were able to share clinical experiences,
learn about differences in the role of the nurse practitioner
student in each country, discuss issues and trends in medicine,
and potentially collaborate on nursing research,” said
Ruth Grubesic, DrPH, APRN, BC, assistant clinical professor
and director of international nursing affairs for TWU-Houston.
Presentations by
Rotterdam and TWU students also were given that demonstrated
the similarities and differences in health care in the U.S.
and the Netherlands. TWU nurse practitioner students also
are pen pals with the Rotterdam students, so they were able
to get to know each other before the visit.
“I think
that the Dutch students gain an appreciation for the amount
of medical knowledge the TWU nursing practitioner students
have and the TWU nursing students learn more about the Dutch
holistic approach to health care.” Ms. Garcia-Maas said.
Linda Ven der Knaap, a nurse practitioner student from the
University of Rotterdam, has learned a lot from her visit
to Houston.
“A nurse
practitioner is a relatively new profession in the Netherlands,
so I appreciate learning that some of the professors went
through the same things that we are going through,”
Ms. Ven der Knaap said. “I have come away with a better
idea of how the profession works with doctors and other providers
to shape the medical care of a patient.”
This is the second
year that students from the University of Rotterdam have visited
TWU-Houston. Dr. Grubesic plans to send some TWU-Houston nursing
to the University of Rotterdam next year.
With more than
13,000 alumni and more than 2,300 undergraduate and graduate
students in Denton, Dallas and Houston, TWU has the largest
college of nursing in Texas and produces more new nurses than
any other program in the state. For more information, visit
www.twu.edu.
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For Further Information
Contact:
Amanda McKeen Simpson
Director of News and Information
Tel: (940) 898-3456
e-mail: asimpson1@twu.edu
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