Rural Curriculum Development: Beyond the Snapshots of Paradise

The University strives to serve the rural community upon which it was built.  The School of Nursing accomplishes the mission of the University through its undergraduate and DNP programs.  While each program aims to deliver a relevant perspective on rural health care, the DNP curriculum with its substantive course work in rural health theory and community engagement provides an exemplar to programs committed to rural health care.  In this presentation, an overview of rural Hawai’i and the health care needs of rural Hawaiians will be addressed.  The unique threads of rural health assessment and DNP student engagement will be presented as it relates to support courses and their methods of evaluation.  The Rural Health Theory course and its companion clinical practicum course further develop an awareness and appreciation for the needs and potential solutions for delivery of quality rural health care.  Critical to the success of the rural health care focus for DNP students has been the overwhelming response of the community and its leaders.  The rural community leaders understand the DNP graduates who will be family nurse practitioner (FNP) providers can fill the health care gaps in their communities.  Consequently, they are eager to collaborate to create synergistic models of health care.  Specific areas to be addressed include curriculum development and focus in rural health, collaboration between the SON and the communities, and delivery of health care by the DNP students.