Managing Community and Neighborhood Partnerships in a Community-Based Nursing Curriculum

A community-based undergraduate nursing program in a liberal arts college sought to establish partnerships with area neighborhoods to enhance the educational process of the program and the health of the neighborhoods. With the full financial and emotional support of the college administration, two unique positions were developed within the nursing department: community partnership coordinator (CPC) and neighborhood coordinator. The CPC works at the greater community level with involvement in area-wide community health ventures to provide a liaison to the community for the nursing department. The CPC coordinates area-wide student experiences, provides oversight to the community-based participatory research process, and expands scholarly opportunities for students and faculty. In addition, a neighborhood coordinator for each of the three underserved, ethnically diverse partnering neighborhoods provides an ongoing presence in the neighborhood, coordinating and teaching students as they have practicum experiences within the neighborhood. The neighborhood coordinator is also intimately involved in the neighborhood, maintaining professional relationships with neighborhood residents, leaders, agency representatives, and health care professionals. Discussion of how challenges of the roles were managed is included.