CICAD Schools of Nursing Project on Prevention of Drug Use and Abuse, Social Integration, and Health Promotion in Latin America and the Caribbean

 

 

 

VIII International Meeting

 


VIII International Annual Meeting of CICAD Schools of Nursing on Demand Reduction in Latin America

 

18-20 August 2003

 

Lima, Peru

 

1. Background

 

    The CICAD Schools of Nursing Project has held international meetings since 1997 to discuss the contribution of the profession of Nursing in reducing the demand for drugs and the results of the projects that have been implemented. The VIII international meeting was held in Lima, Peru, from 18-20 August of 2003.  The objectives and the themes covered in the meeting, the participating countries, and the results are presented below.

 

2. Objectives  

3. Themes of the 8th International Meeting

 

1.  The Role of Universities in Face of the Challenges Presented by the Drug Phenomenon in the Americas;

2.  The Phenomenon of Licit and Illicit Drugs in the Americas from International Relations Perspectives;

3.  The Regional Situation of Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Programs with the Content of Drugs and the Evaluation and Monitoring Systems of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America;

4.  The Regional Situation of Extension Activities with the Content of Drugs of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America;

5.  The Regional Situation of Research Activities with the Content of Drugs of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America;

6.  Challenges and Perspectives of First Regional Research Capacity-Building Program for Nurses to Study the Drug Phenomenon in Latin America – The Case Study of University of Sao Paulo, School of Nursing—Campus of Ribeirao Preto,

SP/Brazil –2002-2003;  

7.  Report of Experiences of Education, Extension, and Research Activities from Four New Schools of Nursing Involved within the CICAD Nursing Project during 2003.

 

4.  Participants

 

 Universities and Schools of Nursing in Latin America

 

National University of Córdoba

School of Nursing

Córdoba/Argentina  

University of São Paulo

School of Nursing

Ribeirão Preto/Brazil  

National University of Rosario

School of Nursing

Rosario/Argentina  

Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon

Faculty of Nursing

Monterrey/Mexico  

National University of Colombia

Faculty of Nursing

Santafé de Bogotá/Colombia  

Autonomous University of Querétaro

School of Nursing

Querétaro, Mexico  

Carabobo University

School of Nursing

Valencia/Venezuela  

University of Guanajuato

School of Nursing

Celaya, Guanuajato, México  

University Mayor de San Andrés

Nursing Career

La Paz/Bolivia  

University of Concepción

Department of Nursing

Concepción/Chile  

University of Guayaquil

School of Nursing

Guayaquil/Equador  

National University of Honduras

School of Nursing

Tegucigualpa, Honduras  

University Cayetano Heredia

School of Nursing

Lima/Peru  

National University Mayor de San Marcos

School of Nursing

Lima, Peru  

University of the State of Rio de Janeiro

Faculty of Nursing

Rio de Janeiro/Brazil  

National University Federico Villareal

School of Nursing

Lima, Peru  

Federal University of Santa Catarina

Nursing Department

Florianópolis/Brazil  

National University of Trujillo

School of Nursing

Lima, Peru  

 

International & National Organizations 

 

Representatives of the Executive Secretariat of CICAD

 

Representative of OAS Office in Lima, Peru

 

Representatives of DEVIDA, Lima, Peru

 

Representatives of US Embassy – Narcotics Affairs Section-NAS –Demand Reduction/Anticorruption Programs, Lima, Peru

 

Representative of SENAD/Brazil

 

5.   Overview of the Meeting

 

            The executive summary of the meeting is presented below.

 

Monday Morning Section  

August 18, 2003

 

    The opening ceremony included the Peruvian national anthem and welcome speeches by the President of the University Cayetano Heredia, Dr. Oswaldo Zegarra Rojas; Director of Faculty of Nursing, Mg. Margarita Alayo Sarmiento, and the CICAD representative, Dr. Maria da Gloria M. Wright. On the table was also present the representative of the US Embassy, Lima, Peru, Dr.James Benson; and the Director of OAS, Lima, Peru, Embassador Dr. Ronalth  Ivan Ochaeta; and the Vice-President of the University Cayetano Heredia, Dr. David Loza Fernandez.

 

    In the audience were presented the following authorities: US Embassy/Lima/Peru – Mrs. Maria Eugenia Vizcarra, Assistant of Anti-Narcotics Section; DEVIDA – Sr. Gustavo Ascacibar, management of Prevention and Rehabilitation Program/Lima/Peru;  Education Ministry – Mrs. Patricia Malpartida Anton, Office of Integral Prevention; International Relations Ministry—Jorge Lazo Escalante, Chief  of Bilateral Issues on Drug Control/Lima/Peru; National Council of Nursing – Nelida Chavez Linares; Panamerican Health Organization – Gladys Zarate Leon; Dean School of Graduate Studies – Fernando Salazar Silva; Dean School of Dentistry of cayetano Heredia—Freddie Williams; and Director Psychiatry Department of Cayetano Heredia – Jorge Castro Morales.

 

    The inaugural address was then given by the Director of Psychiatry Department of Cayetano Heredia University, Dr. Jorge Castro Morales, on The Role of the Universities in Face of the Challenges Presented by Drug Phenomenon in the Americas.

 

    Following that address, was the first panel discussion, which analyzed The Phenomenon of Licit and Illicit Drugs in the Americas from International Relations Perspectives. The three commentators were: Dr. Ronalth Ochaeta, Director of OAS Office in Lima, Peru; Lic. Gustavo Ascacibar,  Coordinator of Prevention and Rehabilitation Programs at DEVIDA, Lima, Peru; and Col. Jose Augusto de Barros, Adjunct Secretariat of SENAD/Brazil. They discussed different aspects of the drug control policies from international relations perspectives, the implications of these policies for demand reduction programs, and the barriers these programs face at national level. They also addressed the importance of nursing professionals in demand reduction area and their collaboration within the National Commission of Drug Control of each country in Latin America.

Monday Afternoon

August 18, 2003

 

    The Second Panel on the topic of The Regional Situation of Undergraduate and Graduate Nursing Programs with the Content of Drugs and the Evaluation and Monitoring Systems of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America, had six panelists that presented the overviews of the following aspects of CICAD Nursing Project: (i) undergraduate nursing programs (Lic. Derma Teresa Fassi de Grenat/Cordoba/ Argentina), (ii) specialization programs (lic. Núbia Stella Medina Arias/Colombia), masters degrees programs (Dr. Yolanda Rodriguez/Venezuela), and the new and old doctoral nursing programs in Latin America (Lic. Silvia Espinoza /Monterrey/Mexico – new programs; and  Maria Itayra Coelho de Souza Padilha and  Margarita Antonia Villar Luis/Brazil – old programs). These presentations provided an  evaluation of the challenges and barriers to include the drug content within nursing academic programs in ten schools of nursing distributed in nine countries of Latin America. The papers provided recommendations about how to enhance nursing curricula with the content of drugs, as well as, the indication for the need to organize a general and specific core curriculum with the minimum hours for each program with the content of drugs. More details about the analysis of the curricula will be presented in the publication that CICAD will produced as a result of the meeting. 

 

Tuesday Morning  

August 19, 2003

 

    The Third Panel addressed The Regional Situation of Extension Activities with the Content of Drugs of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America. Representatives of CICAD Schools of Nursing Project from Groups I, II, and III presented the evaluation of the extension activities developed by ten schools of nursing from 1998 to 2002. Mg. Margarita Alayo/Peru presented the executive summary of the documents related to the topic from Group I (Argentina, Colombia and Venezuela). Wilma Pereira from Bolivia presented the results for Group II (Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru), and Thalia Teran de Endara presented the results of Group III (Brazil, Chile, and Mexico). The general analysis of the extension activities for all schools of nursing indicated that the extension activities were more concentrated in prevention of drug use and abuse than on health promotion and social integration. The papers recommended that the schools of nursing should also develop their extension activities in the area of health promotion and social integration. More details about the analysis of the extension activities will be presented in the publication that CICAD will produced as a result of the meeting. 

 

Tuesday Afternoon  

August 19, 2003

 

    The fourth panel addressed The Regional Situation of Research Activities with the Content of Drugs of Ten Schools of Nursing in Nine Countries in Latin America, presented by representatives of CICAD Schools of Nursing Project from Groups I, II, and III. Maria Ivone Chaves Mauro/UERJ/Brazil presented the executive summary of the documents related to the topic from Group I (Argentina, Colombia, and Venezuela); Veronica Behn Theune/Concepcion/Chile presented the Group II summary (Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru); and Gregorio Martinez Rodriguez/Monterrey/Mexico presented for Group III (Brazil, Chile, and Mexico). The evaluation of the studies indicated also that the majority of the research studies were concentrated in the area of prevention of drug use and abuse, and few studies in the areas of health promotion and social integration. More details about the analysis of the research activities will be presented in the publication that CICAD will produced as a result of the meeting. 

 

    At the end of this section, we celebrated the graduation ceremony of the I group of nurses who participated in the First Regional Research Capacity-Building Program for Nurses to Study the Drug Phenomenon in Latin America with the Dean and Vice-Dean of School of Nursing of University of Sao Paulo and CICAD representative delivering the certificates to the participants.   The 18 participants were very happy and enthusiastic they were able to accomplish all the requirements of program to receive the certificate.

 

Wednesday Morning  

August 20, 2003

 

    The fifth panel addressed The Experience to Implement the I Regional Research Capacity-Building Program for Nurses to Study the Drug Phenomenon in Latin America, presented by Dr. Margarita Antonia Villar Luiz, Vice-Director of School of Nursing at the University of Sao Paulo/Brazil and Coordinator of the Program. The I Regional Research Capacity-Building Program received 18 nurses from nine countries (two per country) from Latin America: Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and Venezuela. The 18 who participated in this program had completed two months of intensive research training at University of Sao Paulo/School of Nursing at Ribeirao Preto/SP/Brazil and eight months of field practice to implement the research study in their countries. This program have provided a title of specialization for those participants that have only Masters degree and a title of post-doctoral program for those who have already a doctoral degree. The program received a very good evaluation and the recommendation for its continuation. All 18 students have completed their research studies and wrote a technical report, a scientific paper to send for publication, and presented a poster about the results of the study in the meeting. The curriculum of this program covers the following aspects: Module I – International Health; Module II – The Drug Phenomenon in the Americas and World; Module III – Research Methods –Qualitative and Quantitative – Applied to the Study of the Drug Phenomenon; Module IV – Distance Research Tutorial Activities – Implementation of research studies in the countries of the participants. CICAD has develop a very innovative capacity-building program at Regional Level that has been used as a model to expand the experience at International Level with the University of Alberta Canada (Summer 2003); University of Maryland (Summer 2004); and University of Michigan (Summer 2005).  A publication about the process to develop and implement a regional capacity-building program and its results will be published by CICAD later this year. All 18 students from this program participate in their graduate ceremony and received their certificate during the VIII Meeting.  

 

    The sixth panel addressed The Report of the Experiences of the New Schools of Nursing Involved on CICAD Nursing Project in the Areas of Education, Extension and Research. The Deans of four new Schools of Nursing, Teresa Micozzi, Rosario, Argentina; Aurora Zamora Mendoza, Queretaro, Mexico; Rosalina Diaz Guerrero, Guanuajato,Mexico,; and Juana Carolina Buchanan Stanley, Honduras, presented the nursing curricula (undergraduate and graduate programs) with the content of drugs that will be implemented in Fall of 2003, the selection of the extension activities and research studies that will be implemented in 2004. The work done in six months and presented in the meeting by the four Deans indicates the feasibility of the CICAD Nursing Project to be initiated and completed in a period of two years. With the experience gained from the ten other schools of nursing involved in the project, CICAD was able to develop a unique model and strategy to work with universities in the topic of drugs in Latin America that supports the recommendation of the external evaluation of the project of expanding this experiences to other countries of the Hemisphere. 

 

    At the end of this section Dr. Gloria Wright received two awards, one from representatives of University of Carabobo/Valencia/Venezuela and the other one from representatives of the University Cayetano Heredia/Lima/Peru for her leadership in advance nursing profession on the area of demand reduction through CICAD Project.

 

Wednesday Afternoon  

August 20, 2003

 

    The international Coordinator of CICAD Nursing Project, Dr. Gloria Wright, met with the Deans, Vice-Deans and Coordinators of Nursing Graduate Programs to discuss the following topics:

6.  Conclusion

 

    The VIII International Annual Meeting of CICAD Schools of Nursing on Demand Reduction in Latin America achieved all its objectives. Prior to the meeting, we received all the papers to be presented in the meeting. The strategy for the meeting gave each coordinator responsibility for coordination and preparation of the documents from their schools and for the executive summary of documents involving two or more countries. This strategy required coordinators to develop certain skills related to undertaking local technical and transnational technical reports. The planning and organization process of the meeting were done all by internet, fax, and phone calls.

All the coordinators and members of academic committee of CICAD Schools of Nursing Project helped to prepare all the documents for all panels of the meeting that they were responsible for. 

The organizers of the meeting from University of Cayetano Heredia side also did an excellent job of coordinating activities before and during the meeting. Twenty-six nursing faculty were involved over a six-month period in planning, organizing, and implementing the meeting with the CICAD representatives, Drs. Wright and Chisman. It was a challenge for CICAD coordinator of the project and the representatives of School of Nursing at the Cayetano Heredia in Lima, Peru.

 

    The six topics covered in the meeting showed the participants the macro and micro determinants and conditioning factors of the drug phenomenon. The participants also perceived the need to integrate the topic of drugs into the graduate nursing programs and relate it to nursing leadership and the use of science and technology. They recognized the need for formulating and working through a regional strategic plan to demonstrated more specifically the contribution of nursing on demand reduction in Latin America. The results presented in the areas of education (curriculum development with the content of drugs—undergraduate and graduate levels); extension activities with the content of drugs; and research studies conducted with drug issues from 10 Schools of Nursing distributed in nine countries of Latin America indicated the success of the project and the contribution nurses can give to the area of demand reduction.

 

    The presentation of the results of activities of four new schools of nursing, indicated the CICAD project can be expanded to other schools of nursing in Latin America and completed all its activities in a period of two years. With the experience gained from the other 10 schools of nursing,  CICAD has designed and implemented a unique project in Latin America for drug demand reduction that can be used as a model for other CICAD projects, along with efforts of other international and national organizations involved with project development in Latin America.

 

 

7.  Recommendations  

 

    The International Coordinator of CICAD Schools of Nursing Project on Demand Reduction in Latin America would like to  make the following recommendations to the Executive Secretariat of CICAD, the participating universities, and other agencies represented in the meeting.