A pilot study was undertaken to ascertain the changes in conceptual understanding that resulted from participation in a study abroad programme in Chiang Mai in Thailand of a small group of Australian final year nursing students. Students' conceptual understandings were measured by means of open-ended interviews based on a case study scenario describing health conditions in a hypothetical Thai village. Students were asked to imagine that they had been appointed to work as a community health nurse in the village and describe how they would undertake the task. Shifts in understanding were detected by interviewing the participants before, during and after their participation in the programme and comparing their responses. The results of this limited study indicated that the impact of participation in the programme was less than expected. Furthermore, the factors of which students tended to show greatest awareness were those about which they had been briefed prior to departure. Nevertheless participants reported they had learnt much from their experiences. It is suggested that the discrepancy between the evidence provided by interview data and students' self-reports may be explained by participation having resulted primarily in the acquisition of the tacit rather than conceptual knowledge.

Multicultural society requires nurses to care for individuals and families with different cultural and religious values to their own. Study abroad programs for nursing students enable the students to be exposed to nursing, health and ways of living in other cultures. Students undertook a program at Chiang Mai University, Thailand through an international university linkage arrangement during 1997. Student concerns, expectations and perceived benefits of study abroad experiences were investigated in this non-experimental descriptive study, which involved a serial interview process incorporating three interviews before, during and after the program. Students undertaking the program acknowledged that they gained increased confidence and an understanding of different cultures. It was concluded that students did develop an increased awareness of and experienced attitudinal changes towards the cultures and health care needs of the country visited.

Major health concerns are not currently addressed in Vietnam as the country strives to upgrade its economic status. The current standard of medical care is rudimentary at best, as is the education and practice of Vietnamese nurses. The Ministry of Health in Vietnam has directed the Medical College of Hanoi to commence a 4-year degree in nursing in 1994. Historical, practical, political, economic, social, and cultural issues affect the development of nursing as a profession. Assistance from the West is sought by the Medical College in Hanoi.