Mulago Nursing and Midwifery School roots for degree status

With 68 years of training nurses, midwives, and lately, palliative care specialists, Mulago School of Nursing and Midwifery (MSNM) wants the Midwifery (MSNM) wants the Education ministry to embark on the process of elevating the institution to a degree level.

The school principal, Eva Nampiima Kakonge, has said the institution is long overdue at the diploma level.

“The school has passed through several milestones from the training of enrolled nurses, midwives, to registered nurses/midwives. In 2007, we were elevated to offer diploma courses. We feel that we are overdue at the diploma level. We should climb higher to have a Bachelor’s degree programme in this institution because it has stood the test of time for 68 years,” Kakonge said.

Mulago School is the oldest Public Nursing and Midwifery training institution in Uganda which was founded by the British colonial government in 1955 to provide curative care in communities. Kakonge appealed during the 12th graduation ceremony of MSNM held at the Queen Elizabeth Nurses’ hostel gardens in Mulago on Friday last week.

At least 548 students were awarded diplomas in Midwifery (183), Nursing (307), Midwifery E-learning (40), and Advanced Diploma in Palliative Care with 18 graduates. She said the graduands have obtained a holistic package to enable them to compete favorably in the job market both locally and internationally.

The state minister for Higher Education, Dr John Muyingo, who presided over the ceremony pledged the ministry’s “full support” on their request to upgrade the institution’s academic programmes.

“Every new knowledge is useful. If the management of Mulago feels that degrees can add something to the health sector, I think any technocrat should welcome it. I have assured them that the National Council for Higher Education will visit the institution and submit a comprehensive report to the ministry of Education for discussion,” Muyingo said.

He added: “I know that a diploma nurse performs better than a certificate holder but one with a degree will have an edge in the field. I know some people are opposed to the current degree syndrome but I think we have to look at things differently.”

The acting director for Higher, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (HTVET), Dr Safina Kisu Museene, told The Observer that Mulago School’s degree appeal is in the right direction.

“With the growing demands in the health profession, Mulago has delayed to start offering completion Bachelor’s degrees for its diploma courses. We have institutions like Jinja and Nsambya Schools of Nursing and Midwifery that long embarked on offering completion degrees on top of other diploma and certificate programmes,” Museene, also a former principal at Mulago, said.

She, however, said the road to the degree status will be more meaningful with increased human resources and infrastructure. Currently, the school has 65 staff. Of these, only 23 are teaching staff; 10 are on the government payroll, and 13 are paid by the governing council. Kakonge said the institution is handicapped with inadequate infrastructure for the administrative offices, staff offices, classrooms, and skills laboratories while the boys’ hostel needs to be expanded given the increment in admissions for male nurses.

She urged the graduands to remain disciplined cadres of the health profession and always aspire to make a difference in their communities.

“Remember, the character of a nurse is as important as the knowledge he/she possesses. Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around,” Kakonge said.

nangonzi@observer.ug