College of Nurses and Midwives inducts 552 new members
The Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives (GCNM) has inducted 552 associates, membership and fellowship residents, made up of 11 fellows, one member and 540 associate members at a two-day ceremony in Accra.
The associate members included 73 top-up residents in peri-operative nursing, 70 critical care nursing, 99 ophthalmic nursing, 91 emergency nursing, 96 Otorhinolaryngology nursing, one paediatric oncology, 10 specialist members for public health and 101 public health nursing residents.
The Rector of the College, Dr Gloria Achempim-Ansong, said the ceremony marked the induction of the first batch of fellows admitted through examination, stating that the fellowship programme was designed to produce senior specialists who would serve as faculty to strengthen the college’s training capacity.
Dr Achempim-Ansong further said the college had so far inducted 2,951 post-basic nurses as associate members since 2023, offering them opportunities to upgrade their skills and become specialists.
Funding
Despite the progress, the Rector expressed concerns about funding challenges, which resulted in many residents struggling to finance their specialist training.
She has called for increased government support in the form of sponsorship, paid study leave and policies that promote specialisation among nurses and midwives.
The GCNM Rector also appealed for the construction of a permanent office complex for the college, explaining that its current facility had become inadequate due to rapid growth.
She, however, pointed to growing partnerships with institutions such as the Hospital for Sick Children in Canada, World Child Cancer, and diaspora nursing groups, which were supporting training in areas, including adolescent health, paediatric oncology and faculty development.
Dr Achempim-Ansong was speaking on the theme: “Building the Future Health Workforce: A Call for Strategic Investments in Specialist Nursing and Midwifery Education”.
Specialised care growing
In a speech read on his behalf, the Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh, acknowledged the growing demand for specialised care and said the ministry was making strategic investments and concrete actions, such as the Ghana Medical Trust Fund, to provide financial support for the treatment of life-threatening chronic conditions and improve access to specialised care.
He said the ministry was also working to sponsor 60 PhD scholarships for tutors over four years to ensure academic excellence and improve faculty development.
He urged specialists not only to deliver care but also to generate knowledge that informs policy and improve service delivery.
Strategic investment
The Chairman of the Governing Council of the GCNM, Dr Thomas Winsum Anaba, also called for strategic investment in specialist nursing and midwifery education to improve health outcomes.
He commended the dedication of the faculty and staff at the College for maintaining high academic and professional standards while urging the inductees to pursue excellence, live with compassion, and be ambassadors of the profession.
The President of the GCNM, Professor Victoria Bam, stressed the high cost of training specialist nursing and midwifery, making it inaccessible to many potential residents of the college.
She called for support in that regard and thanked donors, partners, and the Ministry of Health for their continuous support.
The Dean of the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Prof. Peter Adatara, commended the government for its efforts to strengthen the specialist health workforce, but called for the expansion of specialist training programmes to meet the growing demand.
He also called for collaboration among stakeholders to invest in research to enable nurses and midwives to generate evidence that improves healthcare delivery and informs policy development.
