The Novo Nordisk Foundation has awarded DKK 44.4 million over 7 years to University College Copenhagen for a new talent programme for nursing students starting in autumn 2021. The project will contribute to boosting recruitment to the nursing profession and strengthen nursing practice for older people with chronic diseases.
The talent programme is called the Copenhagen Honours College in Nursing and is an additional course for the most motivated and ambitious students. The project builds on the experiences of a similar talent programme for natural science teachers the Novo Nordisk Foundation also supports.
A growing number of older people are being diagnosed with such chronic diseases as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and type 2 diabetes, and this trend increases the need for nurses with specialist knowledge on nursing practice for older people with chronic diseases in primary health care.
“We are very grateful for this grant from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, which gives us the opportunity to launch a brand new nursing education programme. This means that we will be even better prepared to challenge our students and can also improve the performance of the profession in relation to diseases that typically affect older people. This will be very necessary in the future,” says Stefan Hermann, Vice-Chancellor, University College Copenhagen.
The programme will begin in the second year of study and will especially focus on giving students specialized competencies over and above their basic education to enable them to carry out individualized, coherent care trajectories of older people with a chronic disease.
The talent programme will be evaluated and followed up with research to develop knowledge that will also benefit the development of the standard nursing education.
“With the grant, the Novo Nordisk Foundation wants to contribute to giving students the opportunity to improve their skills in a very important field. The goal is that the talent programme can help to make the nursing education programme an even more attractive choice for future students who want an extra professional challenge during their education. In addition, we are proud to be able to contribute to developing holistic patient care for chronically ill people,” says Berith Bjørnholm, Senior Vice President, Education & Outreach, Novo Nordisk Foundation.
During the 7-year project period, 120 students will have the opportunity to take a 2-year course equivalent to 6 months of full-time study (30 ECTS credits) in addition to their basic education. Copenhagen University College will admit 15 students every 6 months, starting in autumn 2021.
Further information
Sabina Askholm Larsen, Communications Partner, +45 2367 3226, [email protected]
