ELNEC’s primary aim is to educate nurses to improve end-of-life care. While our initial efforts, launched in 2000, were focused in the United States, many ELNEC trainers have had opportunities to travel internationally and provide this education to nurses and other healthcare providers throughout the world. Currently, ELNEC trainers and faculty have traveled to six of the seven continents, representing 42 countries. Many trainers have provided ELNEC educational courses, while others have gone as consultants to work with educators, health administrators, and community leaders to improve care of the dying in their countries. Some are working on translating ELNEC into other languages and adapting it to increase the relevance to other cultures.
In October 2006, the 1st Salzburg Medical Seminar Series for Nurses in Palliative Care, sponsored by the Open Society Institute, took place in Salzburg, Austria. Four ELNEC faculty members taught ELNEC to 38 Eastern European nursing leaders in education and clinical practice from 14 Eastern European countries. ELNEC faculty have been invited to present this training program again at the Salzburg Medical Seminar Series for Nurses in Palliative Care in 2008.
In July 2007, four ELNEC faculty members traveled to Tanzania to provide ELNEC training to nurses and other members of the interdisciplinary team in Africa. Thirty-eight nurses were selected from throughout Tanzania, Rwanda, Kenya, Zanzibar, Zambia, and Malawi. The Oncology Nursing Foundation sponsored this endeavor. Lastly, two ELNEC staff members hosted a reception at the Sigma Theta Tau International Conference in Vienna, Austria in July 2007. The reception, supported by the Open Society Institute, provided an opportunity for nursing leaders world-wide to gather and discuss issues regarding palliative care.
ELNEC trainers receive invitations to speak at international meetings. Some of the major international presentations include:
Sigma Theta Tau International (STTI) Congress: 2003 in Ireland, 2005 in Kona, Hawaii, and 2007 in Vienna, Austria
Global Caring Nurses Foundation: 2004 in Manila and Debu, Philippines
International Cancer Nursing Seminar: 2002, 2004, 2006: Tokyo and Osaka, Japan
Neonatal, Flight and Emergency Nurses Conference: 2005 in Christchurch, New Zealand
European Association of Palliative Care (EAPC): 2006 in Venice, Italy and 2007 in Budapest, Hungary
Upcoming: An ELNEC trainers course will be held in Salzburg, Austria, and Kazakhstan in 2008.
If you are an ELNEC trainer and have provided ELNEC training internationally, please contact Hollye Harrington Jacobs at hollyejacobs@mac.com so your name can be added to the list of international trainers.
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