By Abigail Chaponda in London, United Kingdom
Director Nursing Services at the Ministry of Health and President of the General Nursing Council of Zambia (GNCZ) Dr. Lonia Mwape has called on all Zambian Nurses and Midwives in the Diaspora who have not renewed their practicing licenses in a long time to do so as the GNCZ has waived their outstanding fees.
And Dr. Mwape has said Zambian nurses in the diaspora should find ways of making their skills useful in Zambian hospitals whenever they visit the country in a bid to enhance good practices within the ward environment.
In an exclusive interview after having a productive meeting with the Association of Zambian Nurses UKat The Zambia High Commission in London, Dr. Mwape said, it was imperative that all Zambian Nurses and Midwives home and abroad were in good standing with the General Nursing Council of Zambia.
“I am encouraging all the nurses in the diaspora to take advantage of this amnesty and ensure that they renew their practicing licenses. What this means, is that they should come back home and renew their licenses for that particular year and the board will waive their outstanding dues. I urge all to take advantage of this opportunity and ensure that they are in good standing with the General Nursing Council of Zambia,” she said.
Dr. Mwape also commended Zambian nurses in the UK who have decided to give back to their country by offering their service whenever they visit Zambia as a way of appreciating the free nursing education they received from their country.
“Association of Zambian Nurses UKhave decided to contribute back home in a visible way and they want to establish a model ward, which they should be coming back to and which can also be used as a training ground for nurses locally,” she said.
Dr. Mwape said, even though GNCZ was saddened by the huge number of nurses that left the country, she was happy to note that Zambian Nurses were representing the country well and were eager to give back to Zambia.
And Association of Zambian Nurses UK president Rachel Mwansa said “We have a duty as Zambian who had free education, free medical services to give something to Zambia. We may not have money, but we can offer the knowledge and the skills that we have gained here, we know what works and what we can put in place to help our nation as we look at reforming nursing,” she said.
Meanwhile Dr. Mwape and the Association of Zambian Nurses UK paid a courtesy call on Zambia’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom His Excellency Mr. Muyeba Chikonde who encouraged GNCZ and the Association of Zambian Nurses UK to develop a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for collaboration to enhance cross-pollination of skills between the two organisations.
