Big things are expected from the Dominica State College within the next fifty years.
That’s according to Dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Dominica State College, Nurse Denise Edwards.
Nurse Edwards was speaking on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of nursing education at the State College when she mentioned her expectations.
For starters, says Edwards, the most qualified members of the health sciences faculty are trained at a master’s degree level.
Edwards is sure that all of that will change in the coming future.
“Currently we have a faculty that’s one hundred percent Dominican, all trained at a masters level. In fifty years I would expect that whoever is sitting in this chair would be saying everyone is teaching at a PHD level. I’m calling on my young colleagues to see who will be the first to get their PHD and work in Dominica. Yes we have three people with PHD’s, however none of them currently work in Dominica but I expect that in fifty years that is one of the things that will be addressed, that everyone will be trained at a PHD level.”
Nurse Edwards also foresees additional post-graduate programmes being offered in addition to midwifery.
“We recognize that midwifery is not the only specialty you need and since we have the mandate to provide quality nursing care through the education that we give, we need specialist programmes in medical nursing, in neonatology nursing, in everything from zero to the grave and I see us at health sciences being able to do that.”
The Dean says the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Dominica State College is already making strides to excel long before the next jubilee.
“We are not limiting our focus to nursing. The next jubilee will not be a “nursing” education; it will be a “health sciences,” education. We have trained one cohort of people in environmental health. The second cohort is currently in class. We have begun training of the associate degree in pharmacy. Within the next few years we’ll be offering the associate degree for people aspiring to become lab technicians so the horizon is large and we expect to lead in terms of the Dominica State College, we are the senior partners and we will continue to lead.”
The college will be hosting a week of activities this week to commemorate their nursing education jubilee including a movie night and an awards dinner.