Minister of Health Sylvia Masebo has urged medical training institutions in the country to aim towards producing quality human resources who will contribute to the development of the health sector in the region.
Ms Masebo advised training institutions not to be swayed by the quantity of students graduating, but rather to target towards producing quality healthcare workers.
She said learning institutions often put more emphasis on the number of trainees.
Ms Masebo observed that universities tend to over enroll resulting in compromising on the quality of training offered to students.
“I know that sometimes universities have tended to have over enrolled students leading to compromising on the quality of training.”
The Minister said this when she officially opened the 2nd SHEPIZ annual Scientific Symposium in Lusaka.
Ms Masebo stated that learning institutions have a huge responsibility of producing fully baked healthcare workers who in turn will save lives.
“Your role is to give us quality healthcare workers who will serve lives and prevent deaths,” she said.
The minister insisted on the need not to please funders or donors with increased numbers of students graduating but rather to priorities producing quality graduates.
Ms Masebo advised the University of Zambia to emphasize on quality training as it introduced new learning programmes so as to produce competent graduates.
“Don not put the targets you have set with the funders and donors above quality, therefore as you increase the number of training programmes put emphasis on quality of training so as to produce competent graduates for our country and the region.
As you supplement government efforts in improving human resources for health, let us generate health workers fit for saving people.” She said,
And speaking earlier, The University of Zambia Vice Chancellor Anne Sikwibele said the symposium will provide an opportunity for academic staff, post graduate students and researchers to share their work through a series of presentations lined up.
Professor Sikwibele said the symposium will also aim at addressing key issues affecting Zambia’s health sector such as infectious diseases, tropical diseases, non-communicable diseases and vacations.
She implored Zambian scientists to help find solutions to the problems affecting the health sector in the country
