The NNIA’s educational tools empower nurses with a Voice to Lead

The theme for International Nurses Day (12 May 2022) is: ‘Nurses: A Voice to Lead – Invest in Nursing and respect rights to secure global health’.

The NNIA supports nurses by providing access to the Certificate Programme in Nursing & Nutrition (CPNN). Lucy Msukwa, Nursing Officer, and Founder and Executive Director of Uchembere Wabwino Maternity Limited in Malawi believes that this programme enables nurses with ‘a voice to lead’. “Nurses need to have a strong voice in order to lead. We cannot lead without adequate information. A healthy and sustainable population is one that is rich in knowledge, skills and information which is evidenced-based. The Programme content is easy to understand and easy to apply in real life. It captures all the aspects of healthy nutrition,” she says. “Providing nurses with access to the CPNN is an investment in nursing, because the future is a healthy population, benefiting from proper nutrition and a balanced lifestyle. Investing in CPNN will also bring about innovative ideas to combat the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal number 2 (Zero Hunger) and Goal number 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing)”.

The NNIA provides nurses with access to the CPNN online for free and it is completed at one’s own pace. “It keeps participants up to date with the latest developments in nutrition and adds to their professional growth through webinars that are conducted online. I benefitted a lot from the programme. It gave me insight into how best to deal with nutrition problems among children under 5 years of age – something that I deal with every day. On average, we see 80 children per month at the Uchembere Wabwino Maternity centre. Access to the information from the Programmes’ modules helped me develop the skills to better manage childrens’ nutritional health”.

“The CPNN helps to bring about connection between health professionals and improves their knowledge and skills concerning healthy nutrition. It also boosts the mindset of the nurses completing the courses as they are able to interact with fellow health practitioners,” comments Ms. Msukwa. “The NNIA also provides the Post Graduate Programme in Nutrition (PGPN) certificate which helps healthcare professionals acquire basic knowledge and skills about paediatric nutrition. It also provides access to nutritional brochures and teaching materials and sometimes arranged Google meetings where healthcare professionals from different countries can share their experiences concerning nutrition and breastfeeding.”

Learn more about the NNIA’s digital education programme, here.