Number of nurses recruited for training depends on several factors -Health Sciences Director  

GINA, GUYANA, Tuesday, November 01, 2016

The system in place for the recruitment of nurses and allied health professionals caters for careful consideration for a sufficient intake that will complement the student -tutor ratio at nursing institutes across Guyana.

The recruitment of nursing professionals is not only to satisfy demands of nursing countrywide, but to ensure that competent staff is provided to facilitate effective services to those seeking assistance.

Director of Health Sciences and Education Faculty, Ministry of Public Health, Wilton Benn told the Government Information Agency (GINA) that although there are a great number of individuals qualifying for training, a limit is placed on acceptance, considering those who may make use of the training and become excellent health care professionals.

“Usually we have a highly qualified intake based on the CXC standard and there  has  always been a lot of interest particularly in relation to nursing, and in some respect, sometimes, some measure of frustration comes into young people because they are saying, ‘I’m not getting in and I applied three times’. The fact is there is only a certain amount of nursing students that can be in any given classroom because a critical issue is not only are we interested in terms of the quantum of people we produce, but quality is very important,” the director stated.

Benn further explained that meeting the demands of required staff is based on the competence of those recruited, and that there needs to be a balance within the learning environment of these nurses.

“Sometimes there are a lot of demands from some of the other stakeholders. They question why is it we cannot increase some of those numbers significantly, but the issue is very clear, there must be some sort of balance between the number of students you have, the resources that you have and the faculty,” Wilton Benn explained

Benn added that although a large number of eligible students look forward to being recruited by the nursing institute, greater consideration is given to those that are willing to perform in the capacity of medical personnel.

“We cannot say that we don’t have a high level of interest, really it is the converse in terms of not being able to meet the demands from the standpoint of young people who want to have training in health careers, and so it is more and more competitive. …some areas of public service you can make mistakes you can correct them. We are dealing with people’s lives. A very good nurse saves lives every day.”

Recruiting and training of medical personnel, more specifically nurses contribute overall to the public health sector’s complement of nurses who make the functions of other health care personnel easier.

 

By: Delicia Haynes