Nursing trainees ditch clinical practicum due to non-payment of allowances

Due to financial difficulties, several nursing trainees continue to forego their clinical practice at hospitals, which hinders the effective training of nurses and midwives.

For eleven months, the government has defaulted on the payment of allowances to continuing students.

According to the Ghana Nursing and Midwives Trainees Association, over a thousand students who rely on the allowances to settle their school fees were prevented from writing examinations due to their inability to settle their fees.

Nursing trainees ditch clinical practicum due to non-payment of allowances
On a monthly basis, an amount of ¢350 is paid as allowances to students in the nursing and midwifery training colleges.

Though many have argued the relevance of the allowances, the present government continues to assure students of willingness to pay, hence its restoration after taking over power.

Nursing trainees ditch clinical practicum due to non-payment of allowances
President of the Students Representative Council at the SDA Nursing and Midwifery Training College in Kumasi, Victor Abiri Awini told JoyNews’ Nana Yaw Gyimah that he is able to keep himself in school from the money he makes by working at a pharmacy shop, with the support from family and the monthly stipend from the government.

During the last clinical practicum, Victor was unable to fully fund transportation to the hospital and to feed himself, leading to absenteeism sometimes.

For 11 months, Victor, like other trainees, has struggled their way through school.

At the moment, he is skipping class to increase work hours at his part-time job to enable him to deal with the ¢5,000 he owes in school fees.

Nursing trainees ditch clinical practicum due to non-payment of allowances
Continuing students at Nursing Training Colleges are owed 11 months’ arrears of allowance.

Newly admitted students are owed four months and rotational nurses are owed nine months.

The leadership of the students says many of its members are unable to cater to their education due to poor finances.

Source: Nana Yaw Gyimah