Comparative analysis of the chosen elements of nursing educational systems on the bachelor level in Poland and Finland

Introduction. The dynamics of changes in the modern world influences the increase of human needs in different lives domains. There is
a constant necessity to fulfill them and it should be done by modification and development of education that plays the important role in
learning about reality and understanding it in the appropriate way. It is especially important for nursing education for fulfillment of the
requirements of potential patients/clients. The ideas for changes are usually drawn on the experience of the other countries what is aimed
at optimising the national educational system. To do it, comparative analysis of educational systems is very functional. Its aim is to identify
some positive and some negative points of changes being introduced in education and eventual corrections.

Aim of the study. The aim of the study was to comparatively analyse the theoretical assumptions of functioning the higher nursing educational
systems on the bachelor level in two chosen educational institutions in Poland and Finland. The analysis concerns on the characteristics
of learning goals, educational curricula and contents of education in two representative institutions of nursing education: Faculty of Nursing
and Health Sciences, The Medical University of Lublin and Institute of Health Care and Social Sciences, Mikkeli Polytechnics in Savonlinna.

Material and methods. The method of pedagogical monograph and the technique of document analysis were used in the study. Next, the
comparative procedures were implemented with using the assumptions given by comparative pedagogy to aim the similarities and differences
between the analysed educational systems.

Results and conclusions. The study showed the joint elements for both nursing educational systems and significantly different ones in the
educational offer in both countries.

Nursing Topics 2011; 19 (3): 273–281