UNC School of Nursing doctoral students join fourth annual International COIL Shark Tank Competition

UNC School of Nursing doctoral students in N934: Clinical Scholarship and Professional Communication recently joined doctoral students from St. Luke’s International University in Japan for the fourth annual International COIL Shark Tank Competition.

Interprofessional teams were challenged to use evidence, innovation and cross-cultural collaboration to propose artificial intelligence-supported solutions to health care challenges affecting both countries.

“The most important thing I will take away from this COIL experience is that working across cultures is not primarily about becoming knowledgeable about other people,” said Bernice Asante-Nketiah, a Ph.D. student. “It is about becoming more aware of my own assumptions and creating enough space for another perspective to genuinely change my thinking and work.”

Seven teams presented their proposals after a three-week collaboration. Three teams were named Shark Tank winners: Team 2, Harmony Guardian; Team 4, Home Health Documentation; and Team 7, VaxForward.

The seven proposals were:

• Team 1 — Shift Hero: Smarter nurse-patient assignments using acuity, workload and nurse expertise.
• Team 2 — Harmony Guardian: AI-supported, person-centered dementia care.
• Team 3 — Early Detection: Connecting documentation with earlier recognition and escalation of patient deterioration.
• Team 4 — Home Health Documentation: Reducing documentation burden for home health nurses.
• Team 5 — Ambient Listening: Using ambient technology to streamline nursing documentation.
• Team 6 — MediSync: AI-supported medication reconciliation during transitions from hospital to home.
• Team 7 — VaxForward: Culturally responsive HPV vaccine education and shared decision-making.

Across all seven proposals, one message remained consistent: AI should support, not replace, nursing judgment and human connection.

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