News

•    A decade of pioneering achievements
•    Over the past decade, 278 graduates and 23 master’s graduates of nursing care completed their studies at the Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care
•    Seven successfully accredited modern study programs at all three Bologna cycles

JESENICE, 12 June 2017 – The Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care celebrated the 10th anniversary of its founding with a formal ceremony. The faculty that began its journey in the 2007/2008 academic year as the College of Nursing Jesenice has guided 278 graduates and 23 masters of nursing care into the professional world and collaborated on 55 domestic and international research and development projects. It was these outstanding research, development and pedagogical achievements that provided the foundation for the transformation into the Faculty of Health Care Jesenice. Last year, the institution was renamed into the Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care, taking its name from the first trained female nurse in our country, and successfully received accreditation for its health sciences doctoral study. Today, it offers seven accredited study programs at all three Bologna cycles, which includes the recently accredited physiotherapy study program.

A decade ago, health professionals in the Gorenjska region had the idea of founding a new higher education institution in Jesenice as they observed that demographic trends and the increasing human resource requirements result in the need for a quality higher education institution in the area of nursing care. Its founding was supported by medical public health institutions from the Gorenjska and Central Slovenian region, Ministry of Health, Chamber of medical and midwifery care of Slovenia - Association of professional associations of nurses, midwives and health technicians and other stakeholders. The required facilities and material conditions for its operation were provided by the Municipality of Jesenice which is also the faculty founder.

"Establishing the first independent school outside the existing universities was not an easy task as there were doubts whether such a school can deliver truly quality education," Brigita Skela Savič, PhD, Associate Professor, dean of the Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care, remembers the early days. "To honour the trust placed in us by our supporters and the founder, Municipality of Jesenice, our development was based on a clear vision focused on excellence in education and research, business excellence and social responsibility. Over the past decade we have built on our pioneering achievements and grow out of a regional school into a faculty that I firmly believe is a leader in Slovenia in terms of its contribution to the development of health sciences."

Although it is firmly rooted in the Gorenjska region, the Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care has expanded beyond its regional limits, including study programs that are being offered in Ljubljana. It has become known across Slovenia for its quality pedagogical work, the excellent knowledge of their students and their thirst for new knowledge as well as excellent graduate employability.

It was the first Faculty in Slovenia to attain international accreditation for a nursing care study program at the first and second Bologna cycle. It also offers other programs, such as physiotherapy (First cycle), health promotion (Second cycle), health care sciences doctoral study program (Third cycle) and two programs for further professional training of graduates who completed their first cycle studies.

The faculty was awarded the ISO 9001:2008 and the Quality for the Future of Education certificates for its comprehensive approach to operational quality. In 2015, it was a finalist for the Business Excellence Prize of the Republic of Slovenia award and has received the EFQM's four-star business excellence certificate - Recognised for Excellence.

Work with clinical environments and recognised professional events

The Faculty builds on an innovative model of collaborating with clinical environments, which includes the training it organizes as part of its School for Clinical Mentors. At the same time, the faculty has several other widely known events, such as Moja kariera - Quo vadis, an annual event that connects the entire profession with the goal of developing nursing care. In 2009, it was the initiator and the organizer of the first nursing student conference. Since then, the conference has been organized each year by a different health science faculty of college.

Between 8 and 9 June, the Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care also organized the International Scientific Conference for nursing and health sciences. Here, Slovenian and international professionals showcased the most current research and development efforts from clinical environments and higher education and other institutions and development strategies in the area of modern health care.

The tenth International Scientific Conference was entitled "Continued development of nursing care in the society and its contribution to health promotion". It concluded on Friday at Bled and was attended by 70 Slovenian and 15 international professionals.

About the Faculty

Angela Boškin Faculty of Health Care (formerly Faculty of Health Care Jesenice) is a modern and ambitious faculty providing high quality higher education. It was established in 2007 and its advanced pedagogical approaches, diverse international collaborations and outstanding focus on research and development ensured it is placed among the leading faculties in Slovenia. As the first Slovenian faculty in the area of health science programs, it received international accreditation for its nursing care studies at the first and second Bologna cycle. Find out more at www.fzab.si.

Additional information: Alenka Rožnik Kirar, dekanat@fzab.si, +386 4 5869 360