Experts call for urgent emergency nurse education
Basic Life Support (BLS) instructors demonstrate during the symposium in Kampala on March 21, 2025. PHOTO | BARBRA ANYAIT
What you need to know:
- Prof Tom Ngabirano, Head of the Department of Nursing at Makerere University’s College of Health Sciences, explained that the Master's programme in Emergency and Critical Care Nursing, set to begin in the next academic year, aims to improve outcomes for critically ill and accident patients across the country.
The Ministry of Health (MoH) has attributed suboptimal care in hospitals to the low qualifications of nurses, particularly in managing critically ill patients.
This was revealed on March 21, 2025, by Dr John Baptist Waniaye, the Commissioner for Emergency Medical Services at the health ministry, during the emergency nursing high-level stakeholders meeting and symposium in Kampala.
In his speech, Dr Waniaye emphasised the critical need for introducing specialised courses in emergency and critical care nursing in the country. He highlighted the importance of such training to equip nurses with the knowledge to respond to sudden-onset conditions, such as landslides and floods.
“We have been lacking in specialised training for emergency and critical care nurses. As a result, we have seen an increase in road traffic injuries,” Dr Waniaye said.
He further noted that the high mortality rate during the COVID-19 pandemic was largely due to unpreparedness in providing the right nursing care for patients.
“The lack of preparedness during the COVID-19 pandemic led to many deaths. Similarly, diseases such as viral hemorrhagic fever and Ebola, which we are currently dealing with, require care from trained emergency nurses,” he added.
Prof Tom Ngabirano, Head of the Department of Nursing at Makerere University’s College of Health Sciences, explained that the Master's programme in Emergency and Critical Care Nursing, set to begin in the next academic year, aims to improve outcomes for critically ill and accident patients across the country.
He emphasised the significance of the program in equipping nurses with advanced competencies in both emergency and critical care, which he believes will help address the current gaps in the healthcare system.
“The need for this specialised programme became particularly evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many nurses were unprepared to handle critically ill patients,” Prof Ngabirano said.
He further explained that students will undergo a two-year programme, which will combine theory and practical clinical training. The curriculum, developed in collaboration with nursing institutions from South Africa, Rwanda, and the United States, is designed to prepare students to become specialists in emergency and critical care nursing.
“We have developed this curriculum to train nurses who will become specialists in emergency and critical care,” Prof Ngabirano added. He also noted that there are currently about 1,000 nurses with bachelor’s degrees who qualify to enroll in the programme.
Dr Diana Atwine, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, represented by Ms Christine Nimwesiga, Registrar of the Uganda Nurses and Midwives Council, stressed the importance of emergency nursing as a cornerstone of the healthcare system. She explained that emergency nursing provides life-saving interventions and ensures that critically ill patients receive the urgent care they need.
“We must prioritise emergency and critical care services to enhance patient outcomes and strengthen the overall resilience of the health system,” she said.
She also emphasised the need to invest in capacity building, policy advocacy, and infrastructure development to ensure that emergency nurses are equipped to provide high-quality care.
