Conversion of in-person community immersion class to virtual at Penn Nursing

Editor's Note

Community immersion classes are central to teaching nursing students at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing (Penn Nursing), Philadelphia, about social determinants of health. Opportunities to apply, observe, and clarify health promotion ideas thrive when seen in everyday interactions with individuals outside of an acute care setting.

However, the school had to suspend the in-person class because of COVID-19 and adapt it to a remote learning experience. With undergraduate students placed across six community sites, a challenge emerged.

Though the majority of course time was dedicated to community engagement, there was a combination of in-person and online features incorporated into the class.

Suspension of the students’ attendance at their sites resulted in the inability of the course-required in-person community engagement to be completed, which required flexibility in grading criteria. The university suspended the in-person community engagement and allowed students to take any course pass/fail.

Faculty worked with the students to re-imagine new goals that would still be beneficial for the community members, and faculty and students deliberated remotely with community partners on their needs. For example, two students who worked with a homeless shelter responded to calls for an emergency donation drive and became the lead contacts coordinating donations from the university.

As the class transitioned completely online, faculty incorporated unfolding community health considerations and teachable moments into the class.