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LAHORE: Punjab Health Minister, Dr Yasmin Rashid has said that all nursing schools in the province will be upgraded to colleges with the students receiving degrees instead of diplomas.
Dr Yasmin Rashid said the nurses will now have the option to pursue masters and PhD programs, adding that no government worked to uplift nurses. The student capacity has been increased from 1,600 to 2,350 with two midwifery schools being upgraded to college status, she added.
The minister said the incumbent government had recruited 500 nurses and intends to increase the monthly stipend from Rs20, 000 to Rs31, 000. Moreover, the Shahdara Nursing College would now only train male nurses.
She said in order to develop a healthcare delivery system related to nurses; the PTI government would promote nursing institutions for imparting education up to graduation level.
Dr Yasmin also said that the government has decided to start a nurses’ development program to address the issues of shortage of nursing staff in hospitals across the country.
She said that there was also a plan to launch a public health emergency model under which nurses would be assigned to perform duties at a different level of the health system during any emergency.
This concept would enhance the existing health system to make it train to handle any emergency situation in the hospitals, she added. The minister said that there was also a plan to begin a one-year public health course at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences for nurses.
At the first stage, 25 nurses would be chosen for this programme and they would be deployed at primary and secondary health care system of Islamabad Capital Territory, she informed.
