22nd February, 2024
By Adejoke Adeleye/Ogun
A 300-level student of Basic Medical Science at Harvarde College of Science, Business and Management Studies, Abeokuta, Ogun simply identified as Ajoke has reportedly committed following the closure of the department over non-accreditation by the state government.
The student, who was believed to be pregnant reportedly killed herself by drinking a poisonous substance, suspected to be the popular insecticide, sniper on Monday.
Her lifeless body was discovered in her off-campus hostel room.
Some of the deceased student’s coursemates claimed that she became depressed as soon as she found out that the department where she had been studying for the past three years was not accredited because the school had failed to meet the requirements of the Nursing and Midwifery Councils of Nigeria.
They said her condition got worse when she discovered that she was pregnant
“For more than four months now, she (deceased) had been depressed because the course she was studying was not accredited.
“She used to think and complain because she claimed her parents used all the money they have to send her to the school.
“Things now got worse when she discovered she was pregnant and she could not even have a certificate for the course she had done for years”, the source said.
In the meantime, the Ogun State government closed the college’s nursing department on Tuesday for reportedly offering a six-year nursing science degree programme without the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria’s (NMCN) accreditation.
During an enforcement exercise, representatives of the State Nursing and Midwifery Committee (SNMC) and officials from the State Ministry of Health closed down the department.
Speaking during the enforcement exercise carried out by officials of the State Ministry of Health and members of the State Nursing and Midwifery Committee (SNMC), the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Kayode Oladehinde, said that the institution’s nursing department would stay closed until it received full accreditation and that such unapproved programmes encouraged quackery in the field, endangering the public’s health.
Oladehinde, represented by Mrs Serifat Aminu, the Acting Director of Nursing Services, described a nursing degree obtained from Harvard College and similar institutions without NMCN accreditation as worthless, explaining that graduates from such schools would be denied licensure to practise in Nigeria and other parts of the world.
“We have discovered that many institutions, including Harvarde College, offer nursing degrees to unsuspecting students. Our mission is to clamp down on such institutions because they end up producing quacks in the Nursing profession. This is dangerous for society. Unfortunately, most students are unaware that their time is being wasted”, he said.
Assuring that the government will continue to checkmate quackery in the nursing profession, he cautioned parents and applicants wishing to pursue nursing or related programmes to be aware of institutions making misleading promises and to check the NMCN website for an updated list of recognised institutions.