Japanese Nursing Students visiting Svendborg

A group of Japanese nursing students, experienced in using technological solutions to care for the elderly, visited Svendborg and University College Lillebaelt and discussed the ethical issues of technology.

In Japan, technology is widely used in the care for the elderly, but the Japanese do not have the same ethical considerations to it, as Danes do. This is what Ms. Tove Ecklon, the international coordinator of the nursing programme in Svendborg, learned during the visit of 16 Japanese nursing students and three lecturers last week.

Both Denmark and Japan face a lack of hands in the available manpower taking care of the elderly. Therefore it is obvious to take a closer look at each other's ways of dealing with this challenge, Tove Ecklon says.

At the Department of Nursing in Svendborg, students have an elective course, Welfare Technology, during the last year of the nursing programme. During the course, welfare technology is consequently looked upon from three different points of views - the citizen, the health professional and the technology. The Japanese students focus mainly on the technological solution, more than on how the health professionals may assist the citizens meeting the technology.

Discussing the technology's ethical issues was very new to the Japanese students - an area being very central to the Danish nursing students. It is very interesting to both Japanese and Danish students to meet and discuss issues, especially with someone having a different point of view. It may challenge the usual way of thinking, Tove Ecklon concludes.

The Japanese students also visited nursing homes and day care institutions during their visit in Denmark.

The Department of Nursing in Svendborg hopes to be able to send Danish nursing students to Hokkaido, Japan, where they will be studying the welfare area in a broader perspective.

For further information, please contact Ms. Tove Ecklon, toke@ucl.dk