Comprehensive Nursing course fully phased out as last cohort passes

2026-03-06 - 18:28

The comprehensive nursing training programme has been fully phased out after the last cohort of students completed their final assessment in December 2025. Hellen Mukakalisa Kataratambi, executive secretary of the Uganda Health Professions Assessment Board, confirmed the development while releasing the second series of Uganda Health Professions Assessment Board (UHPAB) examination results. She said all the last cohort students on the phased-out programme had passed. Results show that three students sat for the final assessment for the Certificate in Comprehensive Nursing, the last group under the discontinued programme. The process of discontinuing the course began in 2022 and received parliamentary approval in 2024. However, some students remained in the system during the transition period. The 2025 final assessments marked the end of training under the programme. The comprehensive nursing course was first introduced in Uganda in 1993. The programme aimed to produce nurses with mixed skills across specialities, including general nursing, psychiatry, paediatrics, community health nursing, and midwifery. Before its phase out, it was among the most popular nursing programmes, attracting over 300 students annually nationwide. Safina Musene, commissioner for Health Training Institutions, said despite its popularity among students, employers considered the training too broad. She said the shift aligns with the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) policy, which prioritises skills demanded by employers. The ministry of Health also supported the decision, arguing that comprehensive training produced graduates with wide but less specialised clinical skills. The ministry said the change supports efforts to meet international standards and improve workforce specialisation. The policy now emphasises specialised training in nursing or midwifery rather than the combined comprehensive model. However, some stakeholders opposed the decision. During parliamentary debates in 2024, legislators led by Phillip Lokwang urged the government to conduct deeper studies before phasing out similar programmes. He said curriculum review would have been a better approach than the total elimination of the course. “The ministry of Education should have considered reviewing and strengthening the comprehensive nursing curriculum rather than removing it,” Lokwang said.