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Slow progress in mandatory continuing education for nurses- Guyana Nurses Association

Nov 15, 2011 News

 

The slow progress being made to have continuing education for nurses mandatory in keeping with Guyana’s laws were highlighted at the recent Midwives Association of Guyana Annual Conference 2011.
The theme was “Strengthening Midwifery in Guyana: Embracing New Knowledge, Best Practices and Promoting Innovation.”
According to Grace Bond, Executive Director, of Guyana Nurses Association, unlike other countries, in Guyana nurses, nursing assistants, and midwives are not mandated to present credits to the Medical Council for their re-registration. They are required to pay a fee every two years for their registration.
However, the Association and the Council encourage nurses to attend training sessions to enhance their knowledge with advancements in the medical field. She said that many nurses have been attending the training sessions and the feedback has been overwhelming.
According to Dr. Shamdeo Persaud, Chief Medical Officer, the Nurses and Midwives Ordinance legislation is dated some time around the 1950s. The Health Ministry and stakeholders have been working to create a new draft Bill. It is anticipated that the new Health Minister will present the draft Bill to the National Assembly when the new Parliament commences.
Dr. Persaud said that it is agreed that continuing education for nurses must be mandated, hence the draft Bill.
There are some legal instruments such as the Medical Practitioners Act and the Pharmacist Practitioners Act which mandate credits before doctors and pharmacists could be re-registered.
In the Medical Practitioners Act doctors are required to attend 12 training sessions, four of them could be done on-line. Though not mandated, the Council has asked the nurses to start with four training sessions.
“Unfortunately at this time the Nurses Act does not have the same provision. However, the nurses themselves have agreed with the recommendation of the Health Ministry that continuing education should be part of the process,” he stated.
Dr. Persaud asserted that the Ministry continues to train and retrain all medical professionals to enhance the quality of health care being offered to citizens.
“Training doesn’t stop at services offered at the Health Services Education, where the initial training for a nurse or midwife is done, when they get out in the field they are exposed to continuous training,” Dr. Persaud added.
The Ministry has an alarm programme which deals with emergencies in obstetrics and that programme lasts between two and six weeks depending on the complexities of the problems they will address.
In addition, nurses in Regions One, Seven, and Eight and in some rural communities on the Coastland are exposed to Anaemia Education Programme.

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