Steps Being Taken to Deal with Training of More Nurses

Health Minister, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, says steps are being taken to address the shortage of teacher faculties in institutions that train nurses across the island.

Addressing a Special Interest Group meeting at the Jamaica Diaspora Conference in Kingston on July 26, Dr. Tufton said that creative ways will have to be found in order to solve the problem, which requires qualified persons to teach students, even at the theoretical level.

He indicated that addressing the staffing problem is just as equal as dealing with the shortage of specialised nurses in the public health system.

“We’re looking at how we can (fix) this. The schools (institutions that train nurses) can only take in so many students if they have the faculty to support that. This is similar even with clinical training. You can only take so many students around an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) bed…We do need faculties, in particular the universities,” he said.

Earlier this year, Dr. Tufton informed that a meeting with key stakeholders has set in train strategies to ease the shortage of nurses.

Dr. Tufton emphasised that the issue of teacher faculties is so far-reaching that at least two local institutions are unable to be accredited due to the absence of faculties.

“They are struggling. They are looking to recruit from India, so it is a huge problem,” he said, noting that a resolution to the issue in the short term is imperative.

Meanwhile, the Minister argued that there is need for personnel to adequately manage health care, which must be facilitated through proper training.

“We really need to be developing a programme and we should be looking for persons to manage hospitals,” he pointed out.

Overseas partners at certain institutions are being sought after with a view to training managers.

The Diaspora Conference, which ended on July 26, was held under the theme: ‘Partnering for Growth’.