120 Nurses graduate

One hundred and twenty student nurses at the weekend passed out as professional nurses after a two-year training programme at the Health Management College, a private health institution in Accra.

The students, who have already completed their internship with the Shukura Community Hospital, are now ready for the job market.

At the graduation ceremony which was on the theme: “Grooming passionate professional health workers for today and tomorrow,” the Director of the college, Mr Prince Biney, said the college had been able to train good and qualified nurses,who could effectively deliver when on the field.

Track record

“We have a track record; students from our school have always proved themselves to be the best when on the field,’’ Mr Biney said.

He said the college placed more emphasis on practical training, which made the students always excel on the field.

“Despite the competition, with the records of passing exams, we are still one of the best,” Mr Biney added.

Be mindful of your roles

He, therefore, encouraged the graduating students to be mindful of their roles while rendering their services as health workers to the nation.

A representative from the Shukura Community Hospital, which offers practical training for the students, Mr Awiagah  Sherrif  Kwame, encouraged the students to always show compassion, develop good interpersonal relation and exhibit emotional, mental, spiritual and physical endurance on the field.

“Have a sense of readiness and accessibility of the nurse or caregiver to help the helpless and understand the peculiar suffering of the patient without taking advantage of their situation and without expecting anything in return,” he advised the graduands.

Common goal

Mr Kwame added that as health professionals, irrespective of the rank and job description, nurses should have a common goal of reducing the pains and suffering of patients while maintaining their personal dignity.

He, therefore, appealed to them to desist from any behaviour that would be a hindrance to effective health delivery, advising them to “stop playing with your phones and taking pictures at the expense of your suffering client. Empower yourselves with that special quality of compassion towards all clients without being selective.’’

For his part, the Regional Coordinator of the National Vocational Training Institute (NVTI), Mr Stephen Asomani, said the institute had created a path for further academic progression for all graduates and that it had been deepened by the introduction of NVTI- National Board for Professional and Technician Examinations (NABPTEX) core exams, which allowed certificate holders to write only NABPTX core exams.

He explained that the exam allowed students to pursue Higher National Diploma (HND) and other advanced programmes at the various polytechnics and technical universities.

Mr Asomani, therefore, encouraged the graduating students to be serious in their attitude and approach to the profession.

“Let us think outside the box and develop appropriate strategies to handle the challenges associated with the healthcare programme,’’ he said.