This project will support the modernisation and internationalisation of Mongolian higher education by developing a post-graduate diploma for mental health nursing. The pedagogic skills of lecturing staff will be enhanced by training. The course is expected to improve outcomes for mental health service users by improving clinical skills, help reduce the stigma of mental illness by media coverage and increase the number of applications to work in mental health services.

This project will build on an existing relationship developed between UK-based and Mongolian universities and clinical staff since 2012. Mongolia has one of the lowest numbers of medical and nursing staff in mental health care in the world. There is no formal training in mental health for nurses, and a lack of community service provision. Clinical staff have limited access to information on advancements in research or clinical practice, as resources are not available in Mongolian.

The project consortium from Finland, the Netherlands and the UK propose to address this. They have partnered with the Mongolian National University of Medical Sciences (MNUMS) and two Mongolian private universities to develop a training program, based on combined best practice from the 4 countries, tailored to the meet the needs of Mongolians. 

The project will collate educational curricula, materials, guidance and standards for review by the project partners and carry out a training needs analysis for Mongolian nurses. The curriculum content will be developed and piloted over 18 months with a cohort of 12 students. A series of observational and training visits to clinical and educational settings across Europe will take place for both students and lecturers over a 20-month period.

Achieving an international consensus on the core components of mental health nurse training will be a novel output from this project. Open access to the project materials and course content will enable easy adoption in other countries with similar needs.