Nurses and Midwives Council denies allegations

Koforidua, Jan. 09, GNA - The Registrar of the Nurses and Midwives Council, Mrs Veronica Darko, on Wednesday denied charges that her outfit was deliberately stalling efforts in setting the licentiate examination for students who just graduated from Nursing Training Schools nationwide.

Mrs Darko told the GNA in an interview that the council was merely following a directive from the Ministry of Health (MOH) that now required graduates to do a year rotation before taking the papers.

The Registrar was responding to allegations that the council was deliberately stalling the conduct of the examinations, which are traditionally taken at the latter part of each year. Mrs Darko drew GNA's attention to a Ministry of Health directive, which demanded that medical and paramedical students including nurses undertake a year's rotation before being inducted as professional nurses. This has created some anxiety among the students, apparently unaware of the directive.

Mrs Darko said the council, instead of waiting for the year to elapse before conducting the papers, had decided that the practicum be taken between March and April 2008, while the theory papers were set for April 14-17.

When reached for his comment the Eastern Regional Director of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Ebenezer Appiah-Denkyirah, said that although he was not aware of the specific MOH directive being referred to, he, however, supported the proposal.

He said medical practitioners must be made to take professional examinations before being offered jobs to enhance their professional competence as well as to ready them for the gruelling task ahead. Dr Appiah-Denkyirah said the one-year rotation would give the students practical exposure.