Nursing embodies the human compassion for others and in most cases, others who are ill and suffering from all kinds of human conditions. As a missioner to Kenya this summer, was life-changing in ways . Many years ago as a young girl, I envisioned myself on the African continent, somewhere, somehow, administering care to other people. My nursing allowed me to work with the Dine, or Navajo people, and provide care serving newly diagnosed Type II diabetics, using education, exercise and diet to lower modify HA1C blood.
Although I had no mastery of the language, this experience taught me, nursing and compassion was understood everywhere and care with intent, was good enough. The use of words was challenging at times, but not impossible when communicating with others. Mission work was a reality and I volunteered again for mission in 2018 and returned again the following year to mission in both Kenya and Tanzania.
Fifteen years ago, “Bless the Children Africa Mission (BTCAM) in Kenya was the brainchild of Nola Scrum, MSN, RN, Assistant Professor of Nursing at Texas Women’s University in Dallas Texas. Her annual excursions always included undergraduate nursing students who accompanied her on these mission trips, but never did it occur to her until this year, her learning environment for students warrants clinical credit for this “nursing mission immersion.”
Read more about this mission in. the 2020 issue (TBD) in the Journal of Christian Nursing, 2020:
A Kenyan village: An innovative learning environment for undergraduate nursing students