A call to rethink: Nursing education in Zimbabwe

---

Kudzanayi A N Chigangaidze

Chinhoyi University of Technology, Zimbabwe

: J Nurs Patient Care

Abstract

---

Nursing education is crucial in the achievement of The United Nations 2015 Sustainable Development Goal 3 that aims to “ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all ages”. Zimbabwe produces diploma and degree graduates from the available education programs in the country. The differences in the diploma and degree education program include the curricula, program funding, quality assurance processes, personnel delivering the programs, student exchange programs and partnerships. Graduates from both programs are not required to have licensure examinations to test their competency before practicing. The diploma program has failed to produce graduates who are critical thinkers due to the shallow nature of the learning curriculum. Additionally, the graduates are not involved in strategic decision making in the profession. In the interest of quality and patient safety, it would be appropriate to phase out the diploma program and adopt the baccalaureate nursing degree. The main highlights of the commentary were the gaps between the diploma and the nursing degree program. The lack of affiliation between the schools of nursing and the universities in the country meant that the former failed to receive benefit such as grants and student exchange programs. The nursing degree programs offered by universities go through quality assurance procedures that align with educational and professional benchmarks and this is lacking in the diploma programs. The nursing education for the diploma students is delivered by tutors who have undergrad qualifications in contrast to the nursing degree students are taught by highly qualified lecturers, doctors and professors. The general level of nursing education in Zimbabwe makes it difficult for nurses to be involved in strategic decision making or policy development. Better health outcomes can be achieved through a highly educated nursing workforce.

Biography

---

Kudzanayi A N Chigangaidze has his expertise in adult nursing and has a passion in public health. Kudzanayi is currently a Master’s of science in international public health student at Liverpool John Moores University in the United Kingdom. He has over a decade of experience working in various roles in the field of nursing in Zimbabwe and the United Kingdom. Kudzanayi has also participated in the facilitation of programs under the University Of Washington Department Of Global Health. Kudzanayi’s desire to see a knowledgeable nursing workforce and improved patient safety prompted him to publish his first commentary on nursing education in Zimbabwe.