Professor Ahmed Adu-Oppong, the Dean of School of Nursing, University of Cape Coast, has appealed to long serving nurses to upgrade their professional skills to stay abreast with new professional trends.

He said the nursing profession is not a static one and has been going through changes over the years, hence the need for the long serving ones to exchange ideas with the new nurses and their new learning.

Prof Ado-Oppong said this at the inauguration of the Wisconsin International University College (WIUC) School of Nursing and the introduction of its Bachelor in Nursing Degree programme in Accra.

He urged nursing students to keep abreast with what they have been taught in the classroom so that they could effectively practice them.

Prof Ado-Oppong praised the management of WIUC for affiliating its programmes to the three major government universities in the country as it has helped to change the face of private university education in the country.

He appealed to the National Accreditation Board (NAB) to allow all the public universities in the country come together and develop one set of rules or regulations for schools which want affiliation with them in order to streamline the system and make affiliation easier for private universities.

Prof Ado-Oppong said nurses who would be trained at Wiconsin would be extremely fortunate as they would gain from the exposure to the many cultures represented in the student community as well as opportunities learn French and Chinese.

“Wisconsin’s vision is to develop a Nursing Educational Centre of Excellence which will train exceptional professional nurses who are marketable globally”, he added.

Dr Carlos Arrow, Dean of the School of Nursing, WIUC, said leadership through empowerment was the main approach by which he would run the School of Nursing and training of the students.

“Wisconsin has arrived at a new milestone in Leadership in Education and is moving forward”, he said.

Dr Arrow said the University was granted accreditation by the NAB to offer a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree programme on 29th March 2016 adding that the programme was affiliated to the University of Cape Coast.

He said the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Ghana, the professional body responsible for the training and regulation of nurses and midwives in the country, has also approved the programme, the institution’s facilities and academic staff.

“Admissions are currently underway for the summer semester, which will start on May 11, 2016 and eligible applicants include SHS leavers, healthcare assistants, community or enrolled nurses who will enter the programme at level 100,” Dr Arrow said.

He said holders of a Diploma in Nursing, professional nurses and state –registered nurses would also be placed at Level 200 or higher adding that matured applicants who are non-nursing students could also apply, provided they meet the minimum entry requirements.

In a message delivered on his behalf, Professor Kofi Oduro- Afriyie, Vice Chancellor, WIUC, said the University was working to ensure that in the next 15 years, it would be able to run all science programmes which are offered in public universities of the country.

He urged the students, lecturers and all persons who would use the facilities at the School of Nursing to take good care of them.