By Dayo Johnson, Akure

AKURE — The Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria (NMCN) has charged newly inducted nurses to look beyond traditional clinical practice and embrace research, teaching, entrepreneurship and innovation in healthcare delivery.

The Registrar and Chief Executive Officer of the council, Dr Ndagi Alhassan, gave the charge during the third induction and oath-taking ceremony for professional nurses of Elizade University, Ilara-Mokin, Ondo State.

A total of 78 graduate nurses were inducted into the profession at the ceremony.

Alhassan urged the new nurses to combine clinical excellence with research, teaching and entrepreneurship, stressing the need for them to contribute innovative solutions to challenges confronting the healthcare sector.

“Look beyond traditional boundaries. Acquire clinical excellence, but do not limit your ambitions,” he said.

“Be curious to question existing practices through research. Be passionate to share your knowledge through teaching and mentorship. Be innovative to identify gaps in healthcare delivery and create entrepreneurial solutions to address them.”

According to him, the nursing profession needs not only clinical experts but also scholars, researchers, policymakers and innovators capable of challenging existing practices and advancing healthcare delivery.

“The world needs nurses who are clinical experts, but it also desperately needs nurse scholars, nurse researchers, nurse policymakers, and nurse innovators who will challenge the status quo and bring innovation into the profession,” he said.

Alhassan described the inductees as future leaders of the Nigerian healthcare sector and advocates for patient dignity and compassionate care.

He, however, warned them that the nursing profession could be demanding, with long working hours, resource constraints and emotionally challenging situations.

“As you step out onto the wards, I want to be honest with you, the path of a nurse is as demanding as it is rewarding,” he said.

“You will face long, tiring shifts that test your physical endurance. You will encounter resource constraints that challenge your creativity. And there will be heavy emotional moments that test your spirit.”

The Vice-Chancellor of Elizade University, Prof. Philip Oguntunde, said the healthcare sector was ripe for innovation, urging the graduates to explore opportunities in nursing entrepreneurship.

He said nursing entrepreneurship could enable professionals to establish independent health consultancy services, home-care agencies and specialised maternal and child health centres.

Oguntunde charged the graduates to allow empathy to guide their efforts to develop solutions to healthcare challenges in Nigeria and beyond.

“Allow empathy to drive your desire to find better solutions to healthcare challenges in Nigeria and globally,” he said.

He commended the eight graduates who made First Class and others who distinguished themselves in academic performance, research and character.

“We are proud of you and trust that you can work in the hospital, and explore new frontiers, break barriers in research, pioneer ventures in health entrepreneurship, and teach with passion,” he said.

The Head of the Department of Nursing Science, Dr Alice Ogundele, said the students performed exceptionally well in their professional examinations, recording a 100 per cent pass rate in the recently concluded midwifery examinations.

She also disclosed that one of the students had demonstrated strong research capacity by publishing her project in a reputable academic journal.

Ogundele similarly urged the graduates to look beyond conventional clinical practice and broaden their professional ambitions.

The founder of the university, Chief Michael Ade-Ojo, said his vision was to establish an institution that would provide young Nigerians with quality education, sound character and practical knowledge.

Ade-Ojo said the university’s nursing programme was particularly important to him, noting that its investment in the training of nurses had been deliberate and ambitious.

“Our Nursing programme is therefore very close to my heart. Our huge investment in the training of nurses has been deliberate, intentional and ambitious.

“We do not want to merely produce nurses; we want to produce professionals whose competence, character, compassion and excellence will distinguish them in Nigeria and beyond,” he said.