Promoting health through education - Evaluation and reflections on a pilot initiative between Cairde and Dublin City University
Anne Matthews (Dublin City University), Sarah Duku (Cairde), Cherif Labreche (Cairde)
Abstract
Under a partnership between Cairde and Dublin City University (DCU) ten ethnic minority community group leaders and two Cairde staff members recently participated in an accredited health promotion module at the School of Nursing DCU. Cairde is a community development organisation working to tackle health inequalities among ethnic minority communities. The module ran across one academic semester and was at level 8 under the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland framework. Prior educational qualification/level and previous relevant work and other experience were considered during the application process. Each student was offered an individual mentor from within the School of Nursing and additional tutorials were provided for the students.
In this paper, we will present the results of the participants’ evaluation of their experience and our reflections on our experiences of this partnership between a community development organisation and a higher education institution. The participants’ evaluation was carried out by anonymous, voluntary questionnaire and a focus group. Our focus in the presentation will be on what we have learnt in this pilot initiative and what we can do in the future to further develop this partnership. We will highlight the practical challenges of expanding this initiative and of meaningfully measuring the impact of such initiatives on participants and their communities.
