Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) in Nursing - USN hosts international Blended Intensive Programme in Nursing with European partners.

The University of South-Eastern Norway (USN) has launched a pioneering Blended Intensive
Programme (BIP) in Nursing, bringing together students and faculty from the Portuguese Red Cross Higher School of Health (ESSCVP-Lisboa) and the University of Akureyri (UNAK)).

This initiative is developed in partnership with Body Interact, a global leader in virtual patient simulation.

The Blended Intensive Programme (BIP), titled “Global Perspectives in Nursing: Enhancing Clinical Reasoning, Critical Thinking & Physical Assessment”, brought together nine teachers from the three countries and 26 nursing students for a unique learning experience that combined virtual teaching with physical mobility.

The programme's main objectives were:

- Develop clinical reasoning
- Stimulate critical thinking
- Reinforce physical assessment skills

One of the most innovative elements of this training was the use of virtual simulations, which fostered collaboration between participants from different countries and allowed the development of essential skills for dealing with complex clinical contexts, particularly the challenges posed by population ageing.

Blended Intensive Programmes (BIPs) are intensive, interdisciplinary courses that integrate a virtual component with short-term physical mobility. The face-to-face phase of this course will take place in October in Norway, where participants will have the opportunity to consolidate their knowledge and further develop the international collaboration initiated online.