Pharmacy/Dialysis Technicians Training School for Lionel Town Hospital

A boost in the number of Pharmacy and Dialysis Technicians entering the health sector is expected to result from the opening of a training school at the Lionel Town Hospital, Clarendon.
At a ceremony on Wednesday (September 23) on the grounds of the hospital, Technical Director for the Southern Regional Health Authority, Keith Shakespeare, said that the Southern Regional Health Authority and the Clarendon Health Services are happy for the efforts of the Ministry of Health, the University of Technology (UTech) and the National Health Fund (NHF) in launching the training school in Clarendon.
He said that the health services offered in Clarendon, the Lionel Town community and Jamaica will be greatly improved as a result of the product of the training school.
“The Southern Regional Health Authority and the Clarendon Health Services welcome this partnership, and we stand ready to assist in making this venture a success, because we believe in our people and we believe in the total health and welfare of Jamaica,” he said.
Vice President of Finance, Business and ICT Services at UTech, Dr. Kofi Nkrumah-Young, said that UTech was delighted to be participating in the project, and that the proposal to provide training for the technicians, to support the Ministry of Health’s technical team services in central Jamaica, is in keeping with UTech’s mandate and commitment to support national development in different areas and at different levels.
“UTech has had a long productive relationship with the Ministry of Health, and we are excited to be participating in this latest venture,” he said.
Dr. Nkrumah-Young said that the pharmacy education offered by UTech has been the flagship programme of the institution, with many graduates serving in Jamaica and the rest of the Caribbean.
He added that with the fine offerings of UTech’s course contents, many graduates are job ready and often hit the ground running. This has led the Ministry of Health to divest some its training programmes to the university, including Public Health, the Nursing Degree Programme and, more recently, the Dental Auxiliary Training Programme.
He said that under the programme for Pharmacy and Dialysis Technicians, UTech will deliver two certificate courses to over 100 participants, who will be identified by the Ministry of Health. These are the Certificate in Pharmacy and the Certificate in Dialysis, both at the technicians level.
The programmes will be of one year’s duration. The curricula for the courses have been designed to meet the needs of health care and service systems in Jamaica, and were developed in consultation with experts in their respective fields, he said.
Participants need five subjects in the Caribbean Secondary Examination (CSEC), inclusive of Mathematics, English and a science subject.
“We are confident that the participants who will upgrade their training in pharmacy and dialysis, will be in a better position to meet the increase in patient demand for prescription medication and dialysis treatment”, Dr. Nkrumah-Young remarked.
“We welcome this and other collaboration to address the deficiencies in a number of other professionals that are needed to support quality health care in Jamaica. I am confident that this project will bear fruit, that it will renown to the benefit of the citizens in Lionel town and beyond,” he said.
A building on the premises of the Lionel Town Hospital has been earmarked to house the training centre. As soon as the building is renovated, the centre will welcome its first batch of trainees.