Key Points
- Zimbabwe is increasing the number of nursing graduates to counter the growing healthcare worker shortage caused by mass migration.
- The government aims to produce 5,000 nursing graduates annually through expanded training programs.
- Zimbabwe’s Health Service Board remains hopeful that reforms will help stabilize the healthcare sector.
The healthcare system in Zimbabwe is in an awful state because the country is facing a serious problem of nurse shortage that has led the government to come up with very ambitious policies to increase the number of nurses through production.
As the flow of healthcare professionals out of the country persists, the leadership in Zimbabwe is under pressure to meet the needs of the population while at the same time dealing with a shortage of healthcare professionals.
Over the years, many nurses have dumped Zimbabwe for other countries such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America where they are paid better and are offered better working conditions. This has however led to a serious shortage of these professionals in the hospitals back home and the situation is still getting worse.
Government’s strategies for increasing training offer
To address this problem, the Zimbabwean authorities have announced a plan to expand the enrollment of nursing students. Through the establishment of more nursing schools and the development of other programs, the government wants to graduate 5000 nurses per year.
The health ministry believes that this decision will greatly help in addressing the shortage of staff in public hospitals especially where the patient-to-nurse ratio is very high.
In 2021 and 2022, over 4,000 healthcare workers have left the country, and thus, the government is now trying to train domestic talent at a faster pace.
However, training new nurses is not enough because staffing has also been evidenced by the difficulty of retaining them. This has been due to low wages, unfavorable working conditions and lack of motivation that has seen qualified personnel seek employment elsewhere.
Health sector in Zimbabwe under pressure due to brain drain
This has not only reduced the capacity of the country’s health care system but also established an expensive cycle of recruitment and training that takes a big chunk of the health budget.
With the increase in the demand for health care professionals globally, countries such as Zimbabwe are unable to match the remunerations and other incentives offered by the developed countries.
 New Zimbabwe has reported that health authorities are keen on solving this problem by enhancing working conditions and providing incentives like houses and transport facilities.
However, other critics opine that for the country’s health crisis to be fully addressed, there is a need for a massive boost in salaries and more so, comprehensive policy changes.
Zimbabwe’s Health Service Board (HSB) still holds on to the fact that if the new nursing graduates are posted to the rural areas where the shortage is even more severe, then it could be a way of filling the gap in health care.
Nursing education as a ray of hope
But there is still hope even in the worst of scenarios. This is a clear indication that the government is serious about trying to solve this crisis, hence the steps being taken in the right direction.
The expansion of nursing programs is not only to increase the availability of health care but also for the creation of employment opportunities for the youths of Zimbabwe.
If the nation can manage to retain more nurses and doctors, Zimbabwe’s healthcare sector might gradually start recovering from this difficult period.
But it will require sustained work, international backing, and maybe even policy changes to stem the exodus of doctors and other healthcare workers.
