Nursing Cultural Immersion
Immerse yourself
Nurses provide care for people from a variety of cultures. UW-Eau Claire offers opportunities to learn about nursing care and other cultures through hands-on clinical experiences. Students learn how culture and lifestyle impact health care practices.
They learn the importance of communication between health care providers and people of different cultures. It helps to broaden the students' perspective of caring. Cultural nursing clinical immersion experiences help students understand their own culture better and appreciate the differences of a patient's culture. Students learn to be flexible and develop confidence, independence and a more global perspective to problem solving.
Immersion programs lead to life-changing experiences
Growing up in the small town of Cashton, Wisconsin, nursing student Lindsey Kramer didn’t have a lot of opportunities to interact with people from diverse backgrounds. So, when she came to UW-Eau Claire, she looked for opportunities to educate herself in new ways.
“I was not fully aware of the world around me, and I wanted to take advantage of opportunities that college provided,” Lindsey said. “I joined a few clubs, I traveled to the Rosebud Indian Reservation for my nursing clinicals and participated in the Civil Rights Pilgrimage. These were extremely eye-opening experiences for me.”
Among the highlights of those experiences was meeting Joanne Bland, a freedom fighter in Selma, Alabama, who is still active in the fight for civil rights today.
“I was immersed in other cultures, learned so much about tumultuous times during American history and learned a lot about myself,” Lindsey explained. “I have learned to be more culturally competent and how I can use my voice and privilege to help make a change.”
Cultural Immersion Experiences in Nursing
Nursing has the unique perspective of caring for people in every culture around the world. We offer opportunities to learn about nursing care and cultures through hands-on clinical experiences. You will learn how culture and lifestyle impacts health care practices, the importance of communication between and among people of all cultures, and expand your perspective of caring.
No matter where you are in the world, nurses are needed. Across the street or on another continent, as a nurse, you will encounter people with health needs. Cultural immersion nursing experiences will help you to assist people with those needs and understand your own culture better. You will be able to demonstrate that you are flexible and develop confidence and independence. You will gain a more global perspective to problem solving. This experience will expand the opportunities for the type of nursing that you want to pursue.
Please see the Center for International Education for information about summer opportunities in Mexico and other countries.