Kwaku Agyeman-Manu and Dr. Abigail Kyei with the anniversary cloth
MINISTER OF Health, Kwaku Agyeman-Manu has charged the Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives (GCNM) to provide specialist training for nurses and midwives in the country.
Mr. Agyeman-Manu said education, research and evidence-based practice are interrelated and interdependent adding that, together they promote lifelong learning and advance the knowledge base of the nursing and midwifery workforce to ensure full competency in the administration of best practices in order to guarantee future health gains.
“This is where the Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives comes to provide specialist training education for nurses and midwives.
Government will continue to do all she can to strengthen and increase investment in nurses’ and midwives’ education, training and capacity building in leadership,” he said.
Mr. Agyeman-Manu was speaking at the 7th Annual General Meeting and 4th Seminar of GCNM held at the Pentecost Convention Centre, GomahFetteh in the Central Region.
The meeting also saw 88 Associate Members and 57 members from the Accra, Kumasi and Tamale training sites inducted into the membership of the college.
The 10th Anniversary of the College was also launched at the general meeting.
Mr. Agyeman-Manu said it has been widely recognized that access to research evidence (including evidence-based guidelines) is a prerequisite for health professionals to adopt and adapt best practice in the local context.
“So let me challenge the Ghana College of Nurses and Midwives, who turns 10 years next year, to set up their research fund to support innovative research ideas from its residents and Fellows and also set up an academic journal that will see the publication of innovative research areas. This can be a tool for marketing the College as well as projecting its products,” he added.
Rector of the GCNM, Hannah A. Oparebea Acquah said the College has been running three levels of professional development with 21 membership and seven associate membership programmes carefully selected and developed under the Nursing, Midwifery, Public Health and Mental health Nursing division.
He said five new sub-specialisation programmes at the fellowship level namely Paediatric Emergency, Neonatal, Oncology and Palliative Care Nursing will be launched soon.
President of the GCNM, Dr. Abigail Kyei, in her welcome address said the theme for the 2022 meeting focused on maximising the contribution as specialist nurses and midwives through research and innovative practices towards the achievement of Universal Health Coverage (UHC) in a dynamic health system.
The outgoing GCNM President used the platform to express her appreciation to all who supported her through tenure.
Rector, Ghana College of Physicians and Surgeons, Prof. Richard Adanu, in his keynote address stressed the need for the College of enhance their activities towards speciality, research and innovation in the overall context of achieving UHC.
BY Jamila Akweley Okertchiri