We are NURSES.

Our Story:  Created in 2011 as just an idea on a napkin, the INP has grown to represent a new role for the nursing profession.  Lia Barros was volunteering across the Amazon region of Brazil when she started to understand the  global need for nursing education and practice.  The majority of nurses worldwide practice in an environment completely isolated from their international peers-- therefore missing the beneficial exchange of knowledge and practices.  Nurses in low to middle income countries (LMICs) provide care in clinical settings with no continued education or formal on-the-job training.  Individual nurse precepting and paid  educational opportunities are widely used in developed nations, but few comparable initiatives have been implemented in financially constrained countries. 

Mrs. Barros worked side by side with nurses in large and small hospitals throughout the cities of Sao Paulo, Acre, Belem, and Redencao to identify educational and training needs and to organize week-long nursing education symposiums, witnessing first-hand the mutual benefits of collaborative nursing education and training.  Using that knowledge, she founded the INP.

At the INP, we are committed to creating long-term, sustainable, partnerships across the nursing profession to improve the capacity of the global healthcare community.  We believe that building global nursing empowerment and autonomy through strong education and training, will create the solutions our healthcare system desperately needs.

Our Mission

The mission of the INP is to strengthen healthcare delivery in low resource settings by building global nursing partnerships targeted at bidirectional education, training, and mentorship exchange programs.

Our Work

The INP brings a rich experience and knowledge of nursing education and bedside training in resource limited settings. We provide expertise in site selection and applicant recruitment in addition to coordinating field support and supporting observational site visits by partner nurses at UW Medicine. 

Site Selection: INP works with INTERSECT and local institutions to identify partner nursing departments looking for resources to strengthen their healthcare workers capacity.

Recruitment and Screening: Through deep connections with the professional health community at UW Medicine, INP strives to recruit the most qualified nurses from UW Medicine. Our screening process works to highlight nursing providers who are interested in engaging in a bidirectional nursing education exchange and learn about nursing from our global partners.

Orientation and Training: To prepare UW Medicine nurses for their services, the INP provides training on the practice of nursing in resource limited settings, and familiarizes our nurses with the local burden of disease, the targeted education and training programs they will be implementing, and help them to understand their role as a facilitator for our Local Nurse Champions.

Field Support: Based on an extensive needs assessment and input from our local key informants, the INP develops a targeted education and training program for our UW Medicine nurses to teach. The INP also provides clinical mentorship and resources to support UW Medicine nurses in the field. INP leaders are experienced clinicians and educators ready to assist with challenges as they arise in the field. The INP helps UW Medicine nurses by providing resources such as clinical resources, education materials, and an in-country resource binder with partnership specific logistics.

Reimbursement Stipend: The INP provides up to $300 per UW Medicine nurse for travel costs. Scholarships up to $3,000 per nurse completely funds the trip of our partner nurses to visit the UW Medicine for an observational experience. Funded through private philanthropy these reimbursement stipends ensure that the most qualified applicants can serve and our program engages in bidirectional nursing exchanges regardless of financial barriers.

Our Objectives

1.  Promote and communicate the role of nursing in global health.

2.  Improve healthcare capacity of providers in partner institutions in low to middle income countries (LMICs) through the support and develop in hospital staff education and training programs

3.  Improve UW Medicine nursing intent to stay through impacts on job satisfaction and engagement.

The three pillars of our work are as follows:

Education. Empowerment. Improve.

Our UW Medicine Nurse Preceptors

A nurse preceptor is defined as an experienced and competent nurse trained in the capacity to educate and role model nursing practice in the clinical settings.  Nurse preceptors guide the trainee in development of critical thinking skills, perfection of bedside nursing practice, and acts as a resource of knowledge and hospital policy to new hired nurses. 

 An INP nurse preceptor is a UW Medicine nurse who has extensive experience in her field of expertise and has specialty education in the skills of nurse precepting.  Based on the nurses demonstration of teaching skills, nursing knowledge, and bedside practice, they were hired to become one of their UW Medicine unit's nurse preceptor.  Each nurse completed a preceptor training course and demonstrates annual competency in this expertise.

Furthermore, our INP nurse preceptors have all received training on culturally competent nursing practice, intercultural communication, and our INP education/ training programs.  Training occurs throughout the year and consist of one educational day, recommended literature, and online LMS modules. 

Local Nurse Champions (LNC)

Our locally elected Local Nurse Champions (LNC) are at the center of the INP's work. Each LNC is elected by their nursing leadership and colleagues. A LNC is one who demonstrates an excitement and passion for continued education and is eager to help lead their colleagues in an one the job training and education program.  

The LNC then collaboratively works with the INP program developers to create a targeted training and education program based on their unit's need assessment results.  Each LNC takes on a leadership role in their hospital unit and becomes the  frontline nursing educator. With the guidance of the INP-UW Medicine nurse preceptor, the LNC implements the developed training program, including both classroom learning and bedside precepting. In short, they become their hospitals main resource for nursing practice and the primary link to the INP and their nursing leadership.