Nkhoma College of Nursing and Midwifery e-learning students

Innovative e-learning approach is helping nursing schools and students affected by pandemic in Malawi and Kenya resume classes.

HOUSTON, TEXAS, USA, September 7, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Nursing students in Kenya and Malawi get their first e-learning option. Innovative approach helping schools and students affected by pandemic go back to school.

For the first time, eight nursing schools in Kenya and Malawi are offering their students online classes. Most of the schools are taking a hybrid approach, with some courses administered in-person and others via e-learning. The schools are owned by local churches in Africa and provide education for many lesser-resourced students through scholarships. Keeping the schools open and operating at capacity during the pandemic means innovating to find new learning options.

The eight schools in the initial phase of the program, include:

Kenya: PCEA Tumutumu Nursing School, PCEA Chogoria Hospital/Clive Irvine School of Nursing, PCEA Kikuyu Hospital School of Nursing, Presbyterian University of East Africa, and St. Paul’s University.

Malawi: Ekwendeni College of Nursing, Nkhoma College of Nursing and Midwifery, and Mulanje Nursing School.

Together these schools enroll 2,500 students and offer degrees in nursing and midwifery. Plans call for expanding the e-learning platform to other nursing schools in sub-Saharan Africa.

Lisa Alianiello, Director of the Center for Global Nursing Development, a mission of the Medical Benevolence Foundation (MBF), is leading the initiative for MBF. She reports that MBF’s donor partners are making an industry-leading Learning Management System (LMS) available at no cost so the schools can offer e-learning to their students. School leaders and faculty have worked closely with the MBF team and with Wisenet, an Adapt IT division, providing technical support. Together, they've made the platform ready for the students for the current school term.

The schools are reporting success with the new platform. Faculty can create online and offline course content and customize their courses for the students. The students can access the training from anywhere that internet connectivity is possible. They can download course material for offline use, participate in chats and track their progress.

Given the uncertainty created by COVID-19, it is essential to develop new options to help the students continue their educations. The pandemic exacerbated the nursing shortage in Kenya and Malawi, and the schools are happy to see students return to class and new students enrolling. Said Alice Kadango, Principal of Nkhoma College of Nursing and Midwifery in Malawi, “it is a good platform that can assist students to engage with different clinical skills. We are even showcasing it to other Christian schools as one of our best practices”. Principal Kadango shared photos of the students from the first e-learning training class at her school.

The three-way partnership between the schools, MBF, and Wisenet looks promising and creates exciting possibilities for the future. Wisenet brings expertise in deploying and managing learning management systems used in universities and other learning institutions around the globe. MBF’s long partnership with the nursing schools and focus on sustainable nursing development make the project an ideal opportunity for donor partners. Providing the learning management platform is a tangible way to keep the schools running at capacity, even with closing some in-person classes.

The issue of availability of devices and connectivity is the most significant remaining hurdle for the project. Said Andy Mayo, CEO and President of MBF, “we are beyond delighted that, for the first time, the schools in Kenya and Malawi have access to e-learning. As part of our on-going commitment to developing these schools, we are partnering to see how we can bring other parties to the table with the expertise to help address their device and connectivity needs as well.”

If you are interested in helping schools like these access online learning solutions, please contact MBF at hello@mbf.net.

About Adapt IT
Adapt IT serves over 10,000 global customers, with headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa, and regional offices in Durban and Cape Town. To service international customers, Adapt IT focuses on the Pan African market, through a presence in Mauritius, Botswana, Kenya and Nigeria, as well as on the Asia Pacific market, where the group has a presence in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. Through its presence in Ireland, Adapt IT is able to service customers in Europe. For more information, visit www.adaptit.com.

About MBF
MBF (the Medical Benevolence Foundation) is an international Christ-centered medical mission organization. MBF has served over 140 developing world hospitals, clinics, and nursing schools in 34 countries. Based in Houston, Texas, MBF is registered as a 501(c)3 organization in the USA. Visit www.mbf.net to learn more.

Donna Childress
Medical Benevolence Foundation
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