African nurses’ organisations five-day training in Pretoria seeks to bring a chair for nurses at various policy-making tables…’
PRETORIA – National Nurses Associations (NNAs) from the African region commenced their five-day training on the International Council of Nurses’ (ICN) Leadership For Change programme on February in Pretoria, which seeks to capacitate leaders of the nursing organisations from the continent with strengthened leadership skills so that the region’s nursing voice could grow and take its rightful positions in policy-making decisions.
The ICN training is held at the Roode Valley Hotel in Kameeldrift, outside Pretoria and is hosting at least 12 nursing organisations from 12 countries in the region, namely South Africa, Botswana, eSwatini, Rwanda, DRC, Senegal, Malawi, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Togo, Senegal, Cote d’ivoir.
At least four representatives from each nursing organisation are part of the training called Organisational Development Programme for National Nurses Associations (ODENNA).
DENOSA is represented by four representatives namely, Deputy General Secretary, Khaya Sodidi, Head of Professional Matters, Fina Setshedi, KwaZulu-Natal Deputy Chairperson, Zanele Gumede and Projects Coordinator, Kedibone Mdolo.
Also present at the training are nursing directors from the various countries’ departments of health, heads of nursing schools and leaders of nursing regulatory bodies.
The training is conducted by trainers from ICN. To welcome the attendees to South Africa, was President of DENOSA, Simon Hlungwani, who stressed the importance of leadership role in ensuring the voice of nurses is heard in tables that matters when it matters the most.
The training is emphasizing the importance of nurses occupying a seat in key decision-making tables and for nursing to find its voice from the nurses themselves for better articulation and expression on policies formulations and key decision-making tables.
The training is designed in such a way that, if nurses don’t have a chair in key decision-making tables, they make it a point that they offer to bring their own chairs in the best interest of nursing.
ICN CEO, Howard Catton, stressed that the training also seeks to assist nursing organisations in the region with better survival given that they are in different stages of their own development.
“You have associations with hundreds of paid staff whereas you also have association who may have one or two volunteer staff supporting that particular association,” he explained.
“Therefore, the very simple idea that is at the heart of ODENNA was that those associations furthest on their development journey or experience are able to share and support other associations who are still in the beginning of their learning at their development.”
The training takes place between 27 February and will conclude on 3 March 2023.
