By Walter Wilson Nana
272 Nurses from various professional disciplines across the three schools that make up the Buea-based St. Veronica Medical Centre, SVMC, have been found worthy to move into the job market or pursue further studies.
At a recent graduation ceremony in the SVMC Complex, the Administrator, Francisca Biaka said the graduates went through a rigorous programme that has provided them with the knowledge and skills to practice and continue academic development.
Cross section of SVMC graduates ready for the job market
According to the SVMC Administrator, they ensured that only students who earned the right through hard work, discipline, commitment and the competence to provide safe care to people and patients got to the finishing line. “This is our commitment to the nation,” she noted.
While expressing her centre’s desire to always meet the increasing expectations from the public and the supervisory ministries, Biaka mentioned some of their international partnerships, which they have engaged to improve programme quality and delivery.
Biaka expressed their new found interest in online education for students across all the programmes and research projects, especially in the training of nursing students who are ready to contribute in the health of rural and disadvantaged population by using point of care testing to screen, diagnose and manage diabetes.
She told the graduates to go towards their future as they are now armed with the most important tool to forge ahead. “It’s not about the diploma but what you’ve learnt along the way and what you will do with the education acquired in your journey,” she advised.
Mrs Francisca Biaka, Administrator, SVMC
Biaka said Nursing is evolving rapidly as the health care business, “Therefore health care will continue to see competition, both for patients and for the nurses,” she added.
In her valedictory speech, the best graduate, Nicoline Ambe Bi enjoined her friends and the students still in school not to stop learning even after graduation. “A man who graduates today and stops learning tomorrow is uneducated one day after. The learning process is nonstop,” she mentioned.
Ambe said their respective batches from the various schools have been empowered, fully equipped with the necessary skills to make life better for mankind. She will add; “Be good ambassadors of this noble course and institution. Remain men and women of integrity and pursue like Florence Nightingale ‘the lady with the lamp’ did in her days.”
Prof. Victor Julius Ngoh, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Research, Cooperation & Relations with the Business World, University of Buea, UB, the mentoring university of SVMC said they are happy with their mentorship, which is rigorous in character and professionalism. “We’ve to ensure quality assurance,” he said.
Best Graduate of SVMC 2012, Nicoline Ambe Bi, making her valedictory speech
He invited the graduates not to soil the image of SVMC and UB as they move out to the world of jobs.
Same message was re-echoed by the representative of the Southwest Regional Delegation of Public Health, Dr/Mrs Bridget Moki and the Southwest Regional Delegate of Employment & Vocational Training, James Foretia, who are all supervisory ministries to the three schools that constitute SVMC, including the Ministry of Higher Education.
These three schools include; St. Francis Higher Institute of Nursing & Midwifery, St. Francis School of Nursing & Midwifery and St. Francis School of Health Sciences.
