The Association of Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes (APHNH) plans to expand training programs and intensive care training courses for nurses in the private sector.
“As cases rise again in the country, we are very thankful for the nurses working tirelessly to keep us safe. The strain on them is immense, especially given the country’s shortage of nurses and paramedical staff. In the near future, we can ease their burden by training more nurses and strengthening the sector at large,” said APHNH Secretary Dr. Sunil Ratnapriya.
The ratio of nurses to the population in Sri Lanka stood at approximately two nurses per 1,000 Sri Lankans in 2018, far below the global average of 3.81 nurses per 1,000 population (World Health Organization, 2018). According to APHNH, expanding nursing programs fast could help fill this shortage.
Due to the rising Covid-19 cases and the subsequent pressure on health services, the importance of critical care nurses has been recognised locally and globally. In line with the theme for World Nursing Day this year, ‘A vision for future healthcare,’ APHNH has called for the introduction of critical care training programs in the private health sector.
“Particularly, the need for critical care nurses is especially acute. Critical care nurses provide direct and individualised nursing care to patients and require extensive specialized training. Such formal training programs have not yet been made available to the private sector nursing staff.
Therefore, the APHNH is taking the initiative to introduce this training for private sector nurses,” he said. The APHNH is collaborating with the National Apprentice and Industrial Training Authority (NAITA) and other industry stakeholders to set up a nurses’ training institute.
“We’re very grateful for the contribution of our healthcare workers in the fight against the pandemic. We can’t take the risk they face lightly - nurses formed the biggest healthcare worker group to be infected with Covid-19, according to the International Council of Nurses. We will keep looking for ways to protect and support our private sector medical staff,” Dr. Ratnapriya said.