The Holy Family Nursing and Midwifery Training College has matriculated 260 students for the 2014/ 2015 academic year.

The number comprise 160 for the Berekum Campus and 100 for the newly-created St Mary’s campus at Drobo.

Ms Monica Nkrumah, Principal of the College at Drobo in the Jaman South District of Brong-Ahafo, said the creation of the St. Mary’s Campus became necessary because of the growing demand for quality health care personnel and inadequate health professionals in the country.

She added that the college’s desire to contribute to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) four and five, coupled with the its inability to admit all qualified applicants due to inadequate infrastructure was also a factor.

Ms Nkrumah said 4,467 candidates applied from the 2011/2012 to 2012/2013 academic years but only 454 were admitted, adding that for the 2014/2015 academic year only 260 students out of the 2,840 applicants were admitted.

Ms Nkrumah entreated the students to make maximum use of the opportunity given them as the college placed value on them and selected them out of all the qualified applicants.

She reminded the students of their primary goal at the college which was their academic pursuit and noted that their commitment to academic work would determine their performance in their various examinations.

Ms Nkrumah said there were sanctions which included expulsion for violating any of the Code of Conduct and advised the students to make academic excellence and high moral discipline their watchword.

Mr Opoku Boakye-Yiadom, Berekum Municipal Chief Executive, lauded the Catholic Church for its contribution towards national health and education development and, therefore, urged management of the college to continue to set the pace for other health training institutions to emulate.