The School of Nursing and Midwifery has inducted levels 200, 300 and 400 students into the School. The inductees were from the Department of Adult Health and the Department of Maternal and Child Health of the University of Cape Coast.
The Heads of the aforementioned Departments presented the students for the maiden induction, who were officially inducted into the School as full-fledged student nurses and midwives by the Dean of the School, Dr. Nancy Ebu Enyan.
By their induction and swearing of declaration oath, they were required to focus on their studies to become well-grounded professionals to serve Ghana in all conditions.
As part of the event, the inductees lit candles to indicate their readiness to emulate the good example of the mother of modern nursing, Florence Nightingale, affectionately called the ‘Lady with the Lamp’, by showing compassion, civility and politeness to patients who will visit their facilities for care.
A Senior Lecturer at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Dr. Christian Makafui Boso, who spoke on the theme, " The Nursing and Midwifery Profession: A Calling and the Way of Life", urged the students not to be in the profession for money but to see it as a calling to care for the sick, those who are hurt, those in mental anguish and those near death.
He said it was abundantly clear that the majority of student nurses and midwives entered into the profession as a stepping-stone to other fields and, therefore, did not have the feeling of kindness, care and love for patients.
According to him, nursing was a divine call and urged them to make sure their work always reflects their call. He said nurses and midwives should, therefore, perform their roles with dedication and explained that nursing and fidelity were not just doing the physical aspect of healing but also looking at the emotional and psychological needs of patients. He added that the work of a nurse and midwife required a caring attitude, compassion, commitment, intelligence and commitment.
He stated that nurses had contributed immensely to the development of the nation, especially the roles they played in curbing the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Christian Makafui Boso
Dr Boso said professional nurses and midwives were expected to demonstrate a certain degree of altruism and the right attitude hence the School would instill in them the true spirit of nursing and midwifery and teach them to show that spirit of care for patients.
He encouraged the student nurses and midwives to be innovative and upgrade their knowledge to remain relevant and be abreast of the latest trends in the health sector. He further advised the student nurses and midwives to take advantage of technology to provide improved health care for their patients.
The Nurse Manager at the University Health Services, Mr. Thomas Tamang, who spoke on the topic: " Maintaining Professional Standards in Healthcare Delivery," admonished the student nurses and midwives to exhibit a high level of professionalism in healthcare delivery.
He urged them to be compassionate, caring, and professional and always remember their core mandate of providing quality care for patients whose needs should be of importance to them.
Considering the concept of Universal Health Coverage by 2030, which reflected the Sustainable Development Goals, Mr Tamang urged the students to play their roles toward the achievement of the concept, wherever they found themselves.
He appealed to the students to adopt the best practices that made the nursing and midwifery profession a toast for all, while encouraging them to rise with new zest and work extra hard to improve standards and change the perception of the public about health practitioners.
Mr. Thomas Tamang
Mr. Tamang also called on the student nurses and midwives to strictly abide by the codes and ethics of the profession.
The Provost of the College of Health and Allied Sciences, Prof Martins Ekor, expressed worry about the continuous migration of nurses and midwives into high-income countries for greener pastures. He used the opportunity to counsel the students, whom he said would be trained to be competent and fit for purpose, to help in building their own country, even as they considered lending their support to other countries.
Prof. Ekor urged the students to be poised for an exciting academic experience by delighting in the pursuit of their studies to seek knowledge and truth to become competent professional nurses and midwives.
He advised them to desist from acts that tarnish the image of the profession, indicating it was high time nurses and midwives crafted a new image for the profession.
Dean of the School of Nursing, Dr. Nancy Ebu Enyan
The Dean of the School, Dr. Nancy Enyan, in her address, congratulated the students on their induction into the School of Nursing and midwifery.
She urged the students to hone their skills to remain relevant in the profession.
The Dean asked the students to imbibe the values of integrity, compassion and excellence in the discharge of their duties.
The event was chaired by Prof (Mrs) Ivy Adwowa Efiefi Ekem, former Dean of the the School of Medical Sciences, who advised the students to abide by the rules and regulations of the School of Nursing and Midwifery, bearing in mind that they were under oath and must not misconduct themselves.
Source: Documentation and Information Section-UCC