Obey Musiwa-Herald Reporter
A TOTAL of 237 health professionals, comprising 77 general nurses and 160 specialists, graduated from Parirenyatwa Group of Hospitals on Tuesday.
All the specialist programmes recorded a 100 percent pass rate. The graduates are expected to contribute to the Ministry of Health and Child Care’s target of recruiting more than 50 000 additional health workers by 2030, a move aimed at doubling the country’s health workforce.
Speaking at the graduation ceremony, the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health and Child Care, Dr Aspect Maunganidze, said technology could not replace the essential role played by nurses in patient care.
He said patients assessed nurses not only on their clinical skills but also on how they communicated with them and treated them with respect.
“I described nurses as central to the health system and the 237 graduates join a pipeline of 550 students currently enrolled across general and post-basic programmes,” he said.
“Technology can help us monitor patients and improve clinical decisions, but it will never replace the human touch.
“A patient who is unwell should not have to become unwell again because of the way we handled them.”
Parirenyatwa Group chief medical officer Dr Tsitsi Mildred Magure said modern equipment and infrastructure alone cannot transform healthcare and that the quality of its people decides the outcome.
She said the hospital wants its School of Nursing to lead specialist nurse education and support the spread of specialist services across the country.
“It is the skilled hands, knowledgeable minds, and compassionate hearts of our healthcare professionals that ultimately make the difference,” she said.
Some of the nurses who graduated.
“The lives you serve, the suffering you alleviate, and the dignity you restore to those entrusted to your care are the true measure of success.”.
Principal tutor Ms Rachel Longwe credited the refurbishment of student housing under the Presidential Renovation Programme for lifting morale and learning.
She said occupancy at Adlam House rose from 119 to 222 students.
“A well-rested student is better placed to learn effectively in the classroom,” Ms Longwe said.
“Remember that you, too, may one day become a patient.”
Principal tutor Mrs Mary Musvipa said the Post Basic School is the only institution in Zimbabwe training senior nurses in community nursing and nursing administration.
“It has trained 1 184 community nurses, and its 2025 pass rate was 100 percent in both diplomas,” she said.
Principal tutor of the School of Midwifery, Ms Nyaradzo Pabwaungana, said the institution has kept a 100 percent pass rate for the past 10 years, with its students winning gold, silver and bronze medals in national final examinations.
She said the training is demanding, with long clinical hours and the emotional weight of caring for mothers and newborns.
“No woman should die while giving birth. Be the midwife our mothers, newborns and nation deserve,” she said.
