Developing nursing education in a low-income country

Background: Nursing schools in low-income countries face challenges to effectively educate and retain future nurses in rural settings where healthcare needs are more prominent. It is important to understand the experiences of nursing students in rural settings to better prepare them to meet the complex needs of the community. Little is known about nursing students' experiences in rural Uganda. The purpose of this paper is to explore nursing students' experiences of attending school in a rural setting in Uganda. Methods: A qualitative descriptive design was used to conduct this study. Twelve nursing students from a nursing school in rural Uganda participated in semi-structured interviews. Data were analyzed using an inductive content analysis. Results: Five themes were developed from the data to describe the participants' experiences attending nursing school in rural Uganda. The five themes consisted of: 1) External Factors Affect Nursing Students' Experiences, 2) Physical Environment Features Influence Nursing Students' Experiences, 3) Teaching and Mentoring Capabilities Shape Nursing Students' Experiences, 4) Technologies Impact Nursing Students' Experiences, and 5) Clinical Environment Considerations Structure Nursing Students' Experiences. Discussion/implications: Nursing students identified strengths and weaknesses of the learning environment which shaped their experiences of attending nursing school in rural Uganda. The findings of this study also highlight the need for more teaching resources, simulation technology, and on-site facilities to enhance the learning environment. Implications for improving nursing education in rural settings in Uganda and other low-income countries include recruiting and retaining more qualified faculty, offering professional development opportunities to faculty, and developing infrastructure to support quality education and training.