Supporting Cambodian Midwifery Education Through an International Collaborative Teaching Project

Abstract

A course on nursing process for midwifery students was collaboratively designed and taught by a US
Fulbright Scholar and a Cambodian nursing professor at a rural Cambodian nursing and midwifery
program at the behest of the program director. The project was designed to coincide with a national
initiative by the Cambodian Ministry of Health to launch the use of nursing process by nurses and
midwives.
Using the ADDIE Model, the syllabus and lesson plans were created taking Cambodia’s culture and
resources into consideration. Lessons were delivered in English and Khmer. Upon conclusion of the
course, a case study-based written exam with multiple choice and short answer questions in Khmer was
administered. The sample was composed of 106 first year Khmer speaking midwifery students with
78.4% of the students scoring higher than 70% and 20.8% of them earning 90% or higher.
Nursing process is now integrated throughout the curriculum and midwifery students are modeling its
use in clinical settings. Thus, providing initial evidence on the benefit of international partnerships in
the classroom setting to effectively strengthen midwifery education and practice in Cambodia.