Sampa Traditional Council calls for new dormitories for nursing students

The Sampa Traditional Council, in the Jaman North District of the Bono Region, has called for more dormitories for the only tertiary institution at Sampa.

The Sampa Nursing Training College was established in the year 2012 and admitted its pioneering crop of students in the 2013/14 academic year.

The Akyeamehene, Nana Takyi Poku, in an interview, disclosed a number of inadequate developmental projects at the nursing school on behalf of the Sampa Traditional Council.

According to Akyeamehene, "the female nursing students are housed in classrooms as a result of inadequate dormitories for them."

This was described by the Akyeamehene as "a big challenge that needs an immediate solution."

Nana Takyi Poku, on behalf of the Sampa Traditional Council, said "we will continue to appeal to the government, through the Ministry of Health, to help us with the needed facilities at the school''.

Mr Nsiah Peter, one of the elders in the community, expressed concern about how majority of the nursing students struggle with accommodation in the community.
"People are charging abnormal sums of monies for their rooms in town to rent out to students which discourage prospective students from applying to the school," he noted.

One of the male staff, on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the school has not been able to function fully due to inadequate facilities after its establishment.

"The school receives a lot of applications each year but majority of these students with good grades are denied admission because classrooms are being used as dormitories for continuing students which limit available classrooms for teaching and learning," he stated.

A second year nursing student complained of how she struggles with her colleagues to get to school everyday.

"We could not get a room closer to campus to rent and this has been a big challenge to us anytime we have to attend early morning lectures."

On Tuesday, March 9, 2021, the Sampa Traditional Council, together with the immediate past Member of Parliament for Jaman North, Siaka Stevens, inspected ongoing works on a 48-bed dormitory facility for female nursing students.

In a brief interaction with the contractor, Mr Justice Barnes, the Chief Executive Officer of Barnsee Enterprise Limited, assured them of working hard to meet the completion date scheduled for the project.