Int’l level Nurses’ Academy to be set up: Rajitha

A fully fledged International level Nurses’ Academy as a faculty either under the University of Peradeniya or Colombo will be set up shortly with the aim of bringing Sri Lanka’s nursing to world standards, Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne said.

Addressing the passing out ceremony of ‘Batch 2012 A’ at the Kalutara Nurses Training School, Minister Senaratne said the Health Ministry had decided to establish the Nurses’ Academy’ in Colombo or Peradeniya to train post graduate nurses with all facilities and amenities and President Maithripala Sirisena has given his approval for the project.

“This ‘Nurses’ Academy’ will be equipped to the level of any Nurses’ Academy’ in the world where nurses are trained and taught for Post Graduate Degree programmes. In a few more years, all nurses will be locally trained graduates who have international exposure. Therefore, I believe there will be a huge demand for Sri Lanka trained nurses in the global job market,” Minister Senaratne stressed.

However, one of the drawbacks to upgrade nurses to the level of professionals was that they do not have a degree or similar academic qualifications like doctors, engineers or lawyers. The Nurses’ Academy would fill that gap and lift the nursing service to the level of a profession, Minister Senaratne added.

Commenting on the disagreement expressed by doctors to the proposed Nurses’ Academy, Minister Senaratne said he could not comprehend as to why doctors oppose to the attempt to upgrade the professional level of

This ‘Nurses’ Academy’ will be equipped to the level of any Nurses’ Academy’ in the world where nurses are trained and taught for Post Graduate Degree programmes

nurses. Only a narrow minded person with an attitude of a ‘frog in a well’ could oppose the establishment of a Nurses’ Academy.

Besides, they must not forget that we got the Medical Practice as well as the Nursing Service from the West. In developed countries, the profession of nursing had developed as an independent and separate profession. The Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) must see the world broadmindedly, he said. Commenting on the war crimes allegedly committed during the final phase of the ethnic conflict, Dr. Senaratne said Sri Lanka must not jump to respond to those allegations as the global community had watched how the LTTE and the armed forces exchanged fire at the tail end of the conflict.

Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne was presented with the plan of the proposed five storied building to be constructed for the Kalutara National Health Institute at a cost of Rs. 650 million by the Director of the Institute, Dr. Tilakasiri Gamlath.