Transitioning from education into employment is a daunting process for most students and often requires hard work and determination. In most cases, it is unlikely to have a platform to ensure smooth transition during this tricky times.
Acknowledging this challenge, in January 2023, APZU through its Global Action In Nursing (GAIN) Project, launched a fellowship program to facilitate an effective and well-defined transition of Newly Qualified Nurse Midwives (NQNM) in the country with funding from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) School of Nursing.
On 1st August, 2023, PIH graduated the first cohort of 10 NQNM that have been participating in the fellowship program which started in January this year. The graduating fellows were the non-employed nurse midwives who graduated not more than one year ago and were licensed by Nurses and Midwives Council.
The Nursing Officer and Hospital Matron at Neno District Hospital, Gladys Mtalimanja Banda, disclosed that the fellowship program was initiated with the aim of providing a platform for smooth transition of these nurses from students to professional nurse midwife.
Prior to the graduation, these nurses were placed in different hospitals in Neno to gain hands on experience that will give them a kick start in their career. “Four NQNM were placed at Lisungwi Community Hospital and six at Neno District Hospital,” she said.
“This is the first ever fellowship program for newly qualified nurses in Malawi that is being implemented to ensure the smooth transition of these nurses from students to becoming professional nurses,” continued Banda.
Banda added that the program will also help to improve the delivery of maternal and neonatal services in the district.
During the event, the district nursing and midwifery officer indicated that the outgoing fellows have also been given 12 additional months to continue working in the two hospitals to help them transition to clinical practice.
One of the fellows graduating from the program, Carolyn Kambwiri, who has been working at Lisungwi Community Hospital as a Nurse Midwife Technician, mentioned that the program has imparted immerse knowledge and experience on them which will help them throughout their career.
Carolyn encouraged her fellow graduating nurses to continue working tirelessly to deliver quality services to the people they serve and grasp every lesson learnt from the program. She has also urged them to continue serving patients with the same zeal they had during the fellowship program throughout their career.
Through strong collaboration with the Ministry of Health (MoH) on this project, the efforts of APZU, are playing a vital role in transforming the healthcare landscape and ensuring a healthier future for the people of Malawi.
