The Department of Nursing was organized in July 2019 by the decision of the Academic Council of Semey Medical University, NCJSC. It is located on the basis of the UH (University hospital) SMU, NCJSC.
The appearance of the department dates back to 2012, at a time when the reform in healthcare on the introduction of nursing began to be actively implemented in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Trends in the development of nursing significantly strengthen the role of a nurse in the healthcare system. Modern theories of nursing, based on a scientific approach and evidence-based practices, represent a nurse as an equal partner of a doctor who makes independent nursing decisions, plans and carries out evidence-based nursing care, reflecting it in nursing documentation.
Kazakhstan’s entry into the Bologna Process dictates the need to bring education, professional standards, qualifications and job positions in line with European directives, including on nursing.
For Kazakhstan, the development of the nursing system means its development at all levels of education, quality control of education at the level of international standards, the introduction into practice of the institute of nursing specialists with different positions according to the level of education.
The State Program for the Development of healthcare “Densaulyk” for 2016-2019 provides for the modernization of the nursing education system, increasing the role of nurses, gradual expansion of the competencies of secondary medical personnel in parallel with the change in the standards of their education and retraining.
Currently, nursing specialists are trained not only at the level of basic technical and vocational education, but also within the framework of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in nursing.
There is a need in the Republic to train nurses with the level of academic and applied bachelor’s degree, as well as master’s and doctoral PhD in the future. The national goal, which provides for the availability of advanced practice nurses with an applied bachelor’s degree in nursing by 2030, is more than 40,000 people, which is 39.85% of the share of applied bachelors in the total nursing staff (benchmarking – in the USA – 37.2%, in European countries – 46.8%).
The training of applied bachelors can be carried out only by higher medical colleges. 19 colleges in the Republic of Kazakhstan have the status of higher education, 11 received a positive assessment by the decision of the evaluation commission. Currently, 16 higher colleges (14 public, 2 private) are training applied bachelors. The graduation rate of 6 pilot higher medical colleges in February 2018 amounted to 308 people, of whom 90% are currently employed. In 2019, the graduation rate was 80 people. In 2020, more than 1,200 people are expected to graduate.
Department Tasks:
- Ensure high quality of the educational process in the field of nursing.
- Train competitive specialists with modern knowledge, skills, and competencies.
- Develop research activities in nursing science.
- Implement evidence-based practice and innovative educational technologies.
- Provide training and professional development for faculty and practitioners.
- Promote international cooperation and academic mobility.
Department Functions:
- Develop and implement nursing education programs.
- Organize academic, clinical, and research practice for students.
- Conduct scientific research and introduce results into clinical practice.
- Prepare teaching and methodological materials.
- Organize seminars, trainings, and workshops for students and professionals.
- Participate in accreditation and certification processes.
