SCAFFOLD_Uganda: an ePortfolio project in Uganda to optimize workplace learning in healthcare education

Date
August 2022
Countries
Category
Keywords
ePortfolio
competence
workplace learning
healthcare education
educational design research (EDR)
Institutions
Uganda Nurses And Midwives Examinations Board (Uganda)
Lubaga Hospital Training School (Uganda)
Research fields
Medicine and Health Sciences
Social Sciences

Global disparities in the quantity, distribution, and skills of health workers worldwide pose a threat to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 and deepens already existing global health inequities (World Health organization [WHO] & Global health Workforce Alliance, 2014). Uganda and other low-resource countries face a critical shortage of health professionals, particularly nurses and midwives. Currently, continuing education is undertaken as a full time course, that requires the health workers to leave their stations of duty in order to study. This not only disadvantages their work stations and patients, it has also led to loss of jobs and crowding in the few clinical placement areas as learners try to achieve their clinical rotation goals that are actually graded in logbooks. The covid 19 pandemic grossly affected educational progress in Uganda but awoke many to the possibilities of embracing learning and assessment via technology as was evidenced by most educational institutions in Uganda.

This research project aims to contribute to the capacity building plans of the international and Ugandan government by developing an ePortfolio strategy that improves the quality of clinical education and advances research in healthcare education. The targeted output of this Short Research Stay (August 2022) is a research proposal that will be ready for submission. The ambition of our visitor is to apply for a Phd study. This project is connected with the SBO-FWO SCAFFOLD project “ePortfolios to scaffold workplace learning in healthcare education (www.sbo-scaffold.com).