THE Ministry of Health, in partnership with Child Fund international, has launched an E-learning programme for nurses to help accelerate their training in line with the 21st century technology.
Health Minister Joseph Kasonde said during the launch that E-learning would help increase the capacity of training more nurses and reduce the shortfall which currently stands at 11,255.
“The programmes would be conducted only in nursing colleges managed by the ministry of health and it shall be approached in phases starting with five schools in March which are Ndola, Kitwe, Mufulira, Livingstone and Chipata school of nursing, while the rest would recruit in the next phase in September,” Dr Kasonde said.
He said the ministry would provide teaching staff and space to provide teaching centres and provide employment to nurses who graduate in this programme.
During the launch held at the ministry of health headquarters, Dr Kasonde also handed over the 80 computers to various nursing school s and 10 computers to the General Nursing Council (GNC) valued at K 480, 000.
The 6, 000 nurses would be trained under the programme in the next five years with each registered school of nursing enrolling not less than 50 students initially and eventually increase as they gain more experience.
“Let me point out that the nurses to be trained using this programme will not be different from those trained using traditional methods, those have already established themselves and their high quality is still respected and we cannot reduce the quality by any other approach,” Dr Kasonde said.
Dr Kasonde said the current nursing workforce of Government register stands at 12, 348 and yet the total requirement is 23, 000 living a shortfall of 11, 255 nurses.
He said his ministry was working closely with Cabinet Office to find a lasting solution of this human resource deficit.
And Child Fund National acting director Doras Chirwa said her organisation would support 16 ministry of health school of nursing in which 6, 000 nurses would benefit.
Ms Chirwa said her organisation in collaboration with the GNC had so far trained 16 principal tutors in curriculum adaptation, 30 tutors in content development, 20 tutors in medical editing among others.
She said the training activities were on going until every tutor and clinical instructors were equipped.
This is an act of desperation to replace the fired trained Nurses with half baked Nurses.
Dr. Kasonde knows well, through his own medical training, that training in scientific/medical programmes are best executed through intensive practicals. The ideas of e-learning programmes should only be assigned to such subjects as History, Languages, Economics.
Many people have died as a result of a cruel regime that fired professional Nurses, but instead State House opted release dangerous criminals from prisons. Incidences of crime/thefts have risen sharply in our major towns.
Since the Ministry of Health has been taken over by Dr. Kaseba, the Minister of Health should just quietly service his Parliamentary gratuity with his mouth tightly shut up.
Cyber nurses! elo lwanya!
I am a surgeon working abroad and e-learning is how I am being trained myself. This is 21st century education coming to Zambia! I doubt any of the negative commenters have much in terms of education themselves… What the Honourable Minister is doing should be applauded and emulated throughout Africa. Thank you for bringing the country forward with this endeavour.
Such training should be for short and refresher courses. Training of nurses is done in colleges and universities and have meaning when done with practice in hosipitals and clinics. Our standards are also quite low to embark on such a programme. The quality of training our Nurses will just go further downward, we know it. It in colleges they lack text books, during practice the lack what they need to train practically, what would e-learning do but just produce much more poorly trained nursing staff. Copy and paste training, hey! Just get back the Nurses you fired. They are more meaningful than e-learning graduates. What a cracker, e-learning at the expense of trained and experienced staff!
You guys not honest.Online delivery of education being used every where. This approach is very good if well managed.
E-leatning not the best to deal with the deficit. Solution is expanding the existing nursing colleges by 400% and lower the entry grades for nursing schools. Most of those opting for soccer and being bus conductors can make good nurses except their grade 12 results are not OK. And this is because of no text books in high schools, teachers are demotivated, they drink kachasu,its a mess.
This is GOOD NEWS, THIS IS REALLY A WORKING GOVERNEMENT ALWAYS FINDINGS SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS , IAM IMPRESSED COME 2016 U HAVE MY VOTE WITH ALL MY FAMILY MEMBERS
I just hope they are not fast tracking our nurses as they’re renowned abroad for being the best among their western trained counterparts.
twafwa again.this is sata…..nism way of doing things.half baked president, half baked nurses, half baked everything.2014…2015…2016 ngwa..ngwa…ngwa no sata…nism in zambia.
zambian alwz negetivity lets try to be part of the 21 th century plz move with tym plz pipo
Wanted to ask when this same E-learning program will open at chipata school of nursing,some of us are tired of waiting and losing hope.you guys are way too quiet,with no updates surely.
You are doing good.It depends with how one takes it.
Nursing is not a joke, you are dealing with human life.
e_learning is a good programme pliz go aheard.
Dat z a great ad extraordinarysuperfocalidocous programme,kip up wit de sem spirit as u tek dis country 2 another level.
thax am one of those selected to do the same programme starting this year.
Hello Edward. How have you found it
I want to join please give more details