ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø

LEADING THE WAY: Assoc Prof Jeya Devi Coomarasamy spoke of the importance of clinical practice for the nursing profession in her speech.

TALENT: Members of the ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø Student Nurses¡¯ Association performing during the International Nurses¡¯ Day celebration at ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø University.

LAUNCHED: (right to left) Assoc Prof Jeya, Prof Dr Teoh, Dr McCathy, Dr Mohd Azrin and Asst Prof Lim (second from left) launching the three new programmes from the School of Nursing.

KUALA LUMPUR: It was a dual celebration as ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø University (ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø) hosted nurses from various medical institutions in Kuala Lumpur for a belated International Nurses¡¯ Day celebration and launched three new advanced diploma programmes at the same time. Leading into the celebrations was a seminar themed ¡°New Developments in Health Care¡±. 

In his speech, guest of honour Prof Dr Teoh Kok Soo, pointed out that universal health coverage is an enabler to the right to health and that palliative care is an important aspect of the former. 

He added that the importance of palliative care was also discussed at the 67th World Health Assembly held in Geneva. 

¡°ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø University is proud to state that the Advanced Diploma in Palliative Care for Healthcare Professionals is the first such programme in Malaysia,¡± added Prof Dr Teoh, the deputy vice-chancellor of Academic Affairs and International Relations. 

Three of the programmes that were launched were, Advanced Diploma in Palliative Care for Healthcare Professionals, Advanced Diploma in Teaching Methodology, and Advanced Diploma in Healthcare Informatics. 

Prior to the launch was a healthcare seminar organised by the School of Nursing. Speakers were Dr Sylvia McCarthy ¨C Deputy Medical Director, Hospis Malaysia, Dr Mohd Azrin bin Zubir ¨C Managing Director and Principal, Advanced Informatics Management Centre, and Ms Chong Kylie, final year student of ÎåÒ»³Ô¹Ï¹ÙÍø¡¯s Bachelor of Nursing (Hons). 

Topics discussed were ¡°Palliative care: Quality of life during the final years¡±, ¡°Healthcare informatics for the 21st century¡± and ¡°Perception of the public towards the nursing career¡± respectively. 

According to Assoc Prof Jeya Devi Coomarasamy, the event was organised as part of the School¡¯s efforts to continuously bring quality education and training to nurses as well as to instill a passion for life-long learning in all nurses. 

¡°We can be highly educated but without a strong clinical background we, nurses, will lose out,¡± explained Assoc Prof Jeya. She added that this dual focus on the latest in academic knowledge as well as clinical training was emphasised by the School through clearly defined clinical outcomes and evidence-based learning.