Medical students to return to Zambia
Namibian medical students are expected to report back to two universities in Zambia by the end of this week after the approval certificates for some health-related programmes at the two institutions were reinstated.
The health ministry, in collaboration with the Health Professions Councils of Namibia and the University of Namibia, sent a delegation to Lusaka from 19 to 23 June to investigate the matter.
This happened after the Namibian high commissioner to Zambia had informed the ministry that the Health Professions Council of Zambia had withdrawn licences for the Bachelor of Pharmacy and Radiography programmes at Lusaka Apex Medical University (LAMU), and Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery as well as Clinical Studies at Cavendish University.
The withdrawal followed the discovery of serious violations during compliance monitoring conducted on 17 October last year. The Health Professions Council of Zambia wrote to the affected institutions to address the violations.
But last inspection conducted on 21 May this year revealed even more serious violations than those discovered earlier.
Health acting permanent secretary Petronella Masabane said students were expected to report for classes on 23 September. A total of 91 Namibian students are enrolled at these institutions.
According to her the Health Professions Council of Zambia reinstated the licences for the Bachelor of Pharmacy and Radiography degree at LAMU and the Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery at Cavendish University.
She explained that the Namibian delegation was tasked to investigate the reasons for the decision by the Zambian health council to withdraw these licences. It also had to establish the ability of the universities to take remedial action and assess the overall impact on the students should the universities fail to comply with the health council's requirements.
“Thorough discussions were held with the health council, Cavendish University and LAMU, followed by the physical inspection of the facilities such as the libraries, lecture blocks, laboratories and teaching equipment,” Masabane said.
She said the health council pledged to re-inspect the universities and the programmes immediately once they had addressed the shortcomings.
“The visit was concluded with an agreement that the universities' management would put measures in place to meet the requirements of the health council in order to re-register the affected programmes in time for the second semester commencing by the end of July 2018.”
In case the programmes would not be reinstated soon, the ministry engaged the School of Medicine of the University of Namibia to explore the possibility of admitting the affected students. This process started with a request for the students' academic transcripts from the Zambian universities.
“The ministry, in consultation with key stakeholders, will take reasonable measures to ensure that the training of the students is not unnecessarily disrupted for an extended period and that students are not subjected to education and training that will put their patients and their careers at risk.”
Masabane advised students and their parents to contact the health ministry if they need further information.
ELLANIE SMIT
The health ministry, in collaboration with the Health Professions Councils of Namibia and the University of Namibia, sent a delegation to Lusaka from 19 to 23 June to investigate the matter.
This happened after the Namibian high commissioner to Zambia had informed the ministry that the Health Professions Council of Zambia had withdrawn licences for the Bachelor of Pharmacy and Radiography programmes at Lusaka Apex Medical University (LAMU), and Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery as well as Clinical Studies at Cavendish University.
The withdrawal followed the discovery of serious violations during compliance monitoring conducted on 17 October last year. The Health Professions Council of Zambia wrote to the affected institutions to address the violations.
But last inspection conducted on 21 May this year revealed even more serious violations than those discovered earlier.
Health acting permanent secretary Petronella Masabane said students were expected to report for classes on 23 September. A total of 91 Namibian students are enrolled at these institutions.
According to her the Health Professions Council of Zambia reinstated the licences for the Bachelor of Pharmacy and Radiography degree at LAMU and the Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery at Cavendish University.
She explained that the Namibian delegation was tasked to investigate the reasons for the decision by the Zambian health council to withdraw these licences. It also had to establish the ability of the universities to take remedial action and assess the overall impact on the students should the universities fail to comply with the health council's requirements.
“Thorough discussions were held with the health council, Cavendish University and LAMU, followed by the physical inspection of the facilities such as the libraries, lecture blocks, laboratories and teaching equipment,” Masabane said.
She said the health council pledged to re-inspect the universities and the programmes immediately once they had addressed the shortcomings.
“The visit was concluded with an agreement that the universities' management would put measures in place to meet the requirements of the health council in order to re-register the affected programmes in time for the second semester commencing by the end of July 2018.”
In case the programmes would not be reinstated soon, the ministry engaged the School of Medicine of the University of Namibia to explore the possibility of admitting the affected students. This process started with a request for the students' academic transcripts from the Zambian universities.
“The ministry, in consultation with key stakeholders, will take reasonable measures to ensure that the training of the students is not unnecessarily disrupted for an extended period and that students are not subjected to education and training that will put their patients and their careers at risk.”
Masabane advised students and their parents to contact the health ministry if they need further information.
ELLANIE SMIT
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