Nursing School Shut Down Over Corruption
Affected students have been deployed to Silveria School of Nursing and Mutambara School of Nursing
Nursing School Shut Down Over Corruption
THIRTY-THREE trainee primary care nurses at Nkayi District Hospital have been moved to other nursing schools in Masvingo and Manicaland provinces following the temporary closure of the institution, which has disrupted lectures following the arrest of two tutors on corruption charges.
Nurse e-Recruitment System Scrapped
The school of nursing was closed two weeks ago and the affected students have been deployed to Silveria School of Nursing in Masvingo and Mutambara School of Nursing in Manicaland to continue with their studies.
The closure of the school has attracted the ire of locals. The local community said the closure of District Hospital School of Nursing will affect health delivery services as the students played a critical role at the hospital.
According to a letter written by Nkayi district medical officer Doctor Heron Dube, which the Chronicle is in possession of, students were notified of the closure of the training school.
“Following communication dated 16 January 2024 received from the Ministry of Health and Child Care, student nurse (name withheld) is being released from the Nkayi School of Nursing with effect from 20 January 2024 to continue her Primary Care Nursing training at Mutambara School of Nursing effective 23 January 2024,” read the letter written to one of the affected students.
Dr Dube said the arrest of the two tutors and their subsequent court appearance has left the students stranded with no lessons taking place for days.
“Ideally, the training school must have four tutors to run efficiently, but we had two tutors who have a pending case before the courts and a decision was reached for the students to be deployed elsewhere so that they can finish their courses and go on with their lives.
Nursing School Shut Down Over Corruption
“We have a challenge with securing tutors as they are leaving the ministry in numbers and it’s difficult to replace them. This is why the training school has been operating with just two tutors.”
The two tutors, who have been identified as Ms Miriam Rimbi Reza and Mrs Tabeth Ncube, are set to appear before a regional magistrate in Bulawayo. Their case was moved from the Nkayi magistrate’s courts.
Student Nurses Duped by Cons Promising Jobs
One of the affected students said:
We were given just five days to pack our bags and travel to either Masvingo or Manicaland at our own expense, which is not fair because it’s not our fault that the school here was closed. The tutors who are accused of corruption are known for demanding kickbacks from students to be recruited, but the bosses have been turning a blind eye all this time.
