Strengthening emergency nursing in sub-Saharan Africa : Emergency nursing curriculum

Abstract

Emergency nursing across Africa is delivered in a range of acute clinical and community based public health contexts with national variation in the regulation, education and clinical competence infrastructure. Increasing trauma burden is predicted to create critical proportions by 2035 therefore actions needs to be taken so that emergency nurses are equipped with the right skills to cope. The aim of this initiative is to implement a theoretical and competence framework for guidance to health services across continent of Africa with key milestones for implementation over an extended period of time. National and international endorsement of systems and processes are necessary to enable implementation at clinical level as African countries find themselves in a position to embrace agreed emergency nursing standards. The African Emergency Nursing Curriculum was developed incorporating sentinel conditions and, in addition, harnessing the unique circumstances and essential elements of emergency nursing. Increasing demand on emergency health care systems throughout Africa means that this initiative has huge potential to harmonise standards of care for the benefit of African populations.