Consortia arrangements and educational telecommunication

Revolutionary and rapid changes are required in nursing programs and products to fit with the developing health care system. Many present-day nurses and nursing faculty will require changes in their areas of expertise. Nursing colleges that have faculty qualified in the areas of greatest need should explore the use of consortia for delivering distance education. In this way, quality can be controlled, and the conflict of interest involved in schools trying to change the preparation of their own faculty can be reduced or resolved. Organizing consortia is complex, with problem areas in administration, personnel, and resources. Selected television satellite networks are offered as examples of how to manage the problem areas or as possible vehicles for course delivery.