Edinburgh Napier University (ENU) is dedicated to advancing knowledge by working in partnership with external organisations and wider communities. Through knowledge exchange partnerships, we share our ENU research, knowledge, expertise and skills to deliver impact that influences professional practice and policy, and that also drives key societal change on both a national and global scale. 

Problem:

Newborns Vietnam is a charity dedicated to reducing neonatal mortality in Vietnam. The charity believes that the most effective way of saving newborn infants lives, starts with education and strengthening existing hospital-based care.

In 2017, the charity sought to partner with an organisation who were experienced at delivering international neonatal nursing training to support the upskilling of Vietnamese nurses to ultimately help improve the survival of newborn infants and their long-term health outcomes.

Solution:

Edinburgh Napier University is one of the largest providers of nursing and midwifery education in Scotland and has an international reputation for excellence in these disciplines. Following a successful tender bid, ENU established a knowledge exchange partnership with Newborns Vietnam, which led to the development and delivery of a 16-week neonatal training and educational programme that strives to empower and upskill nurses at the Vietnam National Children's (VNC) Hospital in Hanoi.

Sharing our knowledge and expertise to make a significant global impact to infant survival 

Neonatal nursing is looking after the first 28 days of an infant’s life – often looking after very sick full-term babies, or more commonly, premature babies. UNICEF and the World Health Organisation suggest this period of time, when babies are at their most vulnerable, is when they face the greatest risk of dying.

Through the knowledge exchange partnership with Newborns Vietnam, neonatal specialists from Edinburgh Napier University have developed, and continue to deliver, a bespoke, intensive 16-week education programme, providing Vietnamese nursing staff at the VNC Hospital with crucial in-depth knowledge about theory and evidence-based practice.

To date, over 70 nurses have taken part in programme and with enhanced knowledge and deeper understanding of neonatology, the nurses are building their confidence and leadership skills, becoming excellent advocates for the infants in their care. 

42.2% reduction in infant mortality

Since launching the partnership and education programme, there has been a reduction in infection rates, an improvement in infection control practices, and most importantly, over the three years a 42.2% reduction in infant mortality at the VNC hospital, and it continues to reduce as we teach.

In a very short time, the nurses being trained have flourished through education and are making a real difference and have ensured there are systematic changes in clinical practice to the benefit of both the baby and the mother. These shared efforts for positive change have also received recognition from the Ministry of Health in Vietnam.