This spring term, more than 150 nursing students are receiving clinical training all over the world with BYU's Global Health and Diversity course. BYU nursing students will return in June from a variety of locations, including Ecuador and Australia.

A Global Health and Diversity course offered through BYU allows students to integrate the healing process in diverse groups. The students are divided into a variety of groups, which students gives them the opportunity to work in a specific area of nursing.

One group of students will travel to Bretton Woods, N.H., June 2-5 to participate in the American Holistic Nurses Association Conference. Students will have the opportunity to meet with leaders in holistic nursing and interview them one-on-one. This conference also provides students with a chance to "socialize into their profession," said Glenda Christaens, associate teaching professor.

Last spring, students were able to travel to Guayaquil, Ecuador, where they helped for four weeks in four large hospitals and also out in the community. Students were able to assist in deliveries, in caring for newborn babies and their mothers and in basic healthcare.

Each location helps nursing students understand their field more fully, providing them with "experience in all walks of nursing," said Rose Ann Jarrett, public relations supervisor for the nursing program.

While in the nursing program, BYU nursing students practice with a computer-driven simulated patient. The more popular one, nicknamed SAM by students, stands for super-assimilated man. Clinical training allows students to interact with patients in a variety of real life situations.