Dean’s speech, mission and vision
Dear Visitor,
Welcome to the website of the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University of Primorska. I hope you enjoy your visit and find the information you are looking for.
Since its establishment, the Faculty of Health Sciences has grown into a nationally and internationally recognised educational and research institution within the University of Primorska. It represents a centre of excellence for the development, dissemination, and transfer of knowledge in the field of health sciences.
The Faculty’s core mission is to provide high-quality undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral education in Nursing, Physiotherapy, Nutritional Counselling and Dietetics, Applied Kinesiology, Physical Education, and Prevention for Health. Alongside its educational activities, the Faculty is committed to advancing scientific research and development in the fields of health promotion, disease prevention, and the maintenance and improvement of health.
The undergraduate study programmes place a strong emphasis on the practical application of knowledge, ensuring that theoretical concepts are effectively transferred into professional practice. Clinical and professional placements form an integral part of the educational process, providing students with valuable hands-on experience while strengthening the Faculty’s connections with healthcare institutions, educational organisations, and the wider community. Students enrolled in postgraduate and doctoral programmes further develop their expertise through independent professional and research work.
The Faculty encourages its graduates to remain connected and continue their professional development throughout their careers. Lifelong learning is essential in the health professions, and the Faculty continuously expands and updates its continuing education programmes to meet the evolving needs of healthcare professionals and society.
The Faculty of Health Sciences is a place where theoretical knowledge is translated into practice and where education, research, and professional expertise contribute to improving quality of life. It is therefore no coincidence that its motto is:
“We Add Knowledge to Life!”
I invite you to learn more about our Faculty and to experience our work first-hand.
Dean
Prof. Nejc Šarabon, PhD
Mission
We educate responsibly and with constant care for quality – in the fields of dietetics, physiotherapy, kinesiology and nursing.
As a connected community of colleagues of various professions with a commitment to research and development excellence, we create new knowledge. We apply it to education, lifelong learning, various services and new collaborations, thus responding to contemporary societal challenges in the field of health.
We add KNOWLEDGE TO LIFE, and are connected to the domestic and international environments with a Mediterranean heartiness.
Values
QUALITY
Quality is something we live and breathe. We are well organized, so we evaluate, plan, implement and monitor. Because we care, we are responsible and reliable in the work we do. In this way, we justify the trust of stakeholders who know that, in spite of everything, our work will be done well and on time. We recognize opportunities for improvement and act on them, which keeps us on the path of continuous development and progress.
KNOWLEDGE
We believe that knowledge is a key value for the balanced development of society. We are dedicated and committed to creating new knowledge and are constantly educating ourselves. We pass on our rich experience and the latest scientific and professional findings to younger generations and all the interested individuals.
DEVELOPMENT
By responding to contemporary challenges in the areas of study and research, we take care of the personal and professional growth of employees and students. We support our mission by constantly developing new study programs and engaging in research projects.
GOOD RELATIONSHIP AND COOPERATION
Open and respectful communication is our guide, and good interpersonal relationships and a creative work environment are its best result. Every team member counts. That is why we honour different types of knowledge and skills, experiences, approaches, talents and personal qualities in teamwork. With an attitude of respect and tolerance, we encourage employees and students to realize their potential, and establish many partnerships in the domestic and international environments, in the spirit of cooperation and interconnectedness.
TARGET ORIENTATION AND COMMITMENT
On the basis of the identified needs and opportunities, we set clear goals and find effective ways to achieve them. We are dedicated and committed to staying on track, and proudly show and share our achievements.
RESPONSIVENESS
We are constantly adapting to the changing requirements of the environment and student needs, and are ceaselessly improving the study process. Flexibility is our virtue in the field of research, too: we recognize opportunities and needs of society, and respond to them with stand-alone and partnership project applications.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
By recognizing and considering the needs and interests of the local and wider social environment, we organize and actively participate in various projects for the promotion of health care. Through scientific research findings, we provide and co-create guidelines for better health of the individual and society as a whole. We are an environmentally conscious team, so we take care of waste separation and seek to operate through electronic means to the greatest extent possible. In order to help advance the career development of promising students, we have established a scholarship fund.
Vision
We are a connected, trustworthy team of satisfied, motivated and dedicated employees. With the help of the established system for the transfer of knowledge, experience and good practices, we ensure high professionalism and quality of our work. We implement all of the 11 accredited study programs at maximum enrolment capacity. We have increased the proportion of students who make our study programs their first enrolment choice. We have our own health research program. We have increased revenues from scientific research and the number of professional and scientific publications. We are strongly involved and recognizable in the international and local environments.
HISTORY
History
The beginnings of the development of higher education in the Slovenian Littoral area go back to the sixties when the High School of Maritime Studies of Piran was established, and to the seventies, when fundamentals for other higher education institutions and colleges were set in Koper.
With the economic growth of Primorska region the need for its own University became even more evident, thus on 30th March 1993 a letter of intent envisioning the establishment of the University Study Centre was signed by the mayors of the Littoral communities, the president of the Littoral Assembly, and the representatives of the regional economy. On November 20, 1995 an additional letter of intent was signed, assuring the conditions for the development of higher education in the communities of Koper, Izola, and Piran. On the basis of these initiatives the Littoral communities established and financed the University Study Centre of Koper, whose aim was to facilitate the development of higher education in the region.
In 1997 the project for the establishment of the College of Health Care Izola started on the initiative of the Council of the University Study Centre of Koper. It took almost four years to finish the project. During this period all the requirements for the functioning of the college were fulfilled, i.e. a strong support received by professional and public institutions; adequate teaching and research faculty secured, educational bases established, premises and equipment provided and (last but not least) financial resources granted.
The Council for Higher Education of the Republic of Slovenia confirmed that the requirements for the establishment and operation of an independent higher education institution were met, thus the University Study Centre Council passed the Act about the establishment of the College of Health Care Izola on its 22nd March 2002 meeting. After the Council for Higher Education of the Republic of Slovenia gave its consent to the introduction of the study programme Nursing Care (on 5th July 2002) the provisional senate of the CHCI invited candidates to enrol in the first year course.
In the academic year 2002/03 the first generation of sixty students from all over Slovenia was admitted. The study process was carried out in the rented premises of the Secondary Nursing School in Izola. There were 17 contractual lecturers employed at the College. It was the financial support of the Littoral communities that secured the execution of the study programme as at the time the college was still without licence.
The College of Health Care Izola is one of the seven founding members of the University of Primorska, which was established in April 2003. We started our second academic year (2003/2004) with the concession and our first permanently employed teaching faculty.
When Slovenia entered the European Union we aligned the study programme Nursing Care with Community rules on regulated professions.
In 2004/05 we started with the updated, undergraduate 3-year study programme of Nursing Care, which offers the graduates – nurses and health care workers – adequate knowledge and skills for an independent performing of their profession without preliminary probation. In 2005/06 the first part-time students enrolled. In 2007/08 we will admit 30 students to first year of the new study programme Nutritional Counselling – Dietetics.
Today the Faculty of Health Sciences (former College of Health Care Izola ) teaching faculty and staff guiding principles lay in the fact that students are not numbers, they are personalities, to be lead along the path of their education and qualification towards the diploma, with which they will become independent professionals. By doing so we hope – as all teachers do – to be surpassed some day.
