Endorsing CDP for Quality Nursing and Midwifery Care in Zambia;



Changing health care needs, technological advances, societal attitudes and expectations continue to make the health sector the most dynamic.  These ever evolving needs demand for new approaches and responses to provide direction that influence health care policy and legislation, to inform resource allocation and to understand needs of the health workforce.

In Zambia, nurses and midwives currently account for over 60% of all health care workers with most of them manning the majority of rural health facilities.  The nature of work that nurses and midwives do demand that they be abreast with changing trends in the health care system.  Apart from the desired competences that nurses and midwives attain before graduating from their training, it has been realised that after serving for a period of time, they need to retain or acquire new skills. The sharpened or newly acquired skills help to build capacity of the nurses and midwives within the evolving scope of practice by enabling them to practice safely, effectively, competently and legally. 

 British statesman Benjamin Disraeli once said “Seeing much, suffering much, and studying much, are the three pillars of learning”, if this is anything to go by, then nurses and midwives in Zambia have un intentionally  lagged behind on third pillar. This is not surprising when one is overworked, underpaid, under-resourced and tired because of exposure to competing priorities. However nurses and midwives are going against all-odds to attain the third pillar through Continuous Professional Development (CPD) as a means by which they can maintain their knowledge and skills related to their professional lives. 

The sharpened or newly acquired skills help to build capacity of the nurses and midwives within the evolving scope of practice by enabling them to practice safely, effectively, competently and legally.CPD has been globally identified as a vital tool in boosting professional competence. The General Nursing Council of Zambia (GNCZ) conducted a needs assessment to determine the learning needs, types and opportunities available for nurses and midwives which uncovered vast opportunities to enhance the nursing and midwifery profession in Zambia.  This prompted the Government of the Republic of Zambia, in April 2016, through GNCZ to introduce CPD as a mandatory requirement to be under taken by nurses and midwives before the renewal of their annual practicing licences.  Each nurse and midwife is required to accumulate 20 points before license renewal by undertaking learning activities related to the profession as provided for in the national CPD frameworks.The introduction of CPD can be traced back to the African Health Professions Regional Collaborative (ARC) meeting held in 2012 where as the Zambian Quad (consisting representatives of the ministry of health, the General Nursing council, Zambia Union of Nurses Organisation (ZUNO) and the nursing and midwifery academia), decided to address the issue of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) as a Mandatory Requirement for Nurses and Midwives License Renewal.  Various cooperating partners such as Centre for Disease Control (CDC), the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) and JHPIEGO came on board to support the programme and ensure its implementation. 

Minister of Health Dr Chitalu Chilufya launching the CPD programme for nurses and midwives in Zambia at Intercontinental Hotel in Lusaka ©ZUNO
GNCZ identified some institutions as recognised as CPD providers. These include ZUNO, JHPIEGO, Ministry of Health, Health Training institutions, and Health facilities who immediately started providing CPD.  Some Institutions are already offering short courses for this purpose.  Apart from other professional activities, ZUNO has embarked on the process of developing modules for CPD with the financial support of the CHAI as part of its 2016-2018 advocacy work plan.  ZUNO through the Department of Policy, Programs and Professional Affairs intends to provide a wide range of CPD modules that take care of the fundamental nursing and midwifery skills.

The CDP modules focus on the following key areas; Nursing Care Programs; Leadership and management; Reproductive Health; Child Care; Patient Safety and Infectious Diseases; Health Policy and Regulation; Professional Programs   and Wellness programs .
The topics have been carefully selected to help further improve the quality of nursing and midwifery care in Zambia. The main focus of nursing and midwifery is caring. This can only be effectively done when those engaged in a life long journey of nursing and midwifery embrace lifelong learning.


-ENDS-

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