Dr. Abdulaziz Y. Najmaddin, shares his thoughtsInstitute trains workers for Yemen’s health care sector [Archives:2003/629/Health]

Ismail Al-Ghabiri
The Higher Institute for Health Sciences in Sana'a is reckoned as one of the prominent institutes that helps provide the country with highly trained and competent cadre in the various sub-disciplines of medicine such as laboratory and rays-technicians, pharmacy assistants, and even natural treatment.
Yemen Times reporter Ismael Alghabry met Dr. Abdualaziz Najma-ddin, the institute's vice -dean. Following is an edited version of their discussion.

Q: What are the activities being currently carried out by the Institute this year and those in the past year?
A: Activities implemented at the very outset of the academic year 2002-2003 are many. For instance, a course in teaching methods for instructors has been held at the Higher Institute for Health Sciences along with its branches. The course lasted for one year carried out by the two staff of both the Health Institute and Sana'a University. The course has been financed by the German government.
Another practical short-term course meant for supervisors and trainers in which many supervisors and trainers took part has also been implemented .
Moreover, there is a three-year course in the natural treatment funded by the Italian (Movimondo) Organization – that also funds another program in Aden at Ameen Nasher's institute – to be carried out by the competent staff of the institute all over the country's governorates.
The institute here in Sana'a along with its branches have admitted a large number of students in all its various specialized departments such as, midwifery, nursing, public health, medical statistics, medical assistants, medical laboratories, rays and pharmacology, beside admitting many students in the nursing schools supervised by the Institute, such as the nursing schools of Athawrah General Hospital , Sabeen (70) Hospital , Aljumhury Hospital and in some other nursing schools in some other governorates.
Besides, financed by Germany, U.S. and Social Fund for Development a number of nurses and midwives have been admitted in Mareb and Saadah. And here let us do justice to the(SDF) as it generously and constantly finances innumerable activities in the country such as constructing health institutes in all governorates, constructing specialized departments such as maintenance workshop for the medical appliances in Sana'a, building a hostel for female students, constructing the diagnosis laboratory, furnishing students' hostel and some parts of the institute as well as supplying it with training tools and appliances.
The Institute also carries upon its shoulders the accountability of training during service so as to technically further qualify the cadre who graduated from the Institute a few years ago.

Q: What is the enrolling policy adopted in the Institute and its branches, and what is the concise number of the students enrolled this year?
A: In Sana'a this year about 585 students have been admitted in the varying specialized departments of the Institute, over 30 female students in the nursing school of Athawrah General Hospital, and over 25 students in Assabeen Hospital, most of which are workers in the same hospital and over 30 students in Aljumhury Hospital.
With respect to the students enrolled this year in all the specailized departments and the branches of the Institute are as follows: about 333 students in Taiz, 235 in Hudaidah, 163 in Ibb, 163 in Dhemar, 65 in Hajah, 68 in Almahweet, 55 in Sadah, 120 in Amran, 120 in Marab and AlBaidha and the nursing school in Wadee Bana'a at Assadah and 150 students in the far-off areas.

Q: Are the private health institutes being supervised by the Institute, especially with respect to the examination process?
A: To begin with, private institutes have emerged in the previous couple years as a result of the huge output of secondary schools on one scale and the students' desire and keen interest in health education on another. Some of those institutes are licensed and many others are not.
The licensed ones adopt the official curricula and of course there is a commission by the Institute that constantly controls and supervises the teaching and training processes and the curricula and that is only in the licensed institutes whose certificates get officially attested. These numbers are currently being trained and qualified by the Nasher's institute and its branches in the northern governorates. The institute focuses its concentration more on the woman element as it encourages those enrolled and provides them with accumulation and nutrition and transportation

Q: What are the obstacles the Institute encounters?
A: It is axiomatic that we face a host of obstacles technically, administratively and financially . On the technical side the problems encountered by the Institute are as follows:
– Unavailability of scholarships for the teaching staff so as to continue the higher studies each in his/her area of specialization
– Need of training and technical cadre in some departments and the inability of recruiting cadre as well.
– Inability to qualify all the cadres in the institute in the provinces of teaching methods, supervision and activating courses.
– Unavailability of transportation media for the students which constitutes the major obstacle to thoroughly fulfill students training
On the administrative side there are many difficulties on the top of which is the transportation problem as we don't have even one single means of transportation to supervise and follow up the latest development in both – the branches and field work.
On the financial side the institute though receives students from all governorates yet it has a very limited budget and that does not able us to provide and purchase training tools and other vital and crucial requirements as computers, modern clarification media, administrative bureau for the lately open sections. And such being the case, the institute remains unable to reward those deserving marvelous activists in scientific research, instructing and supervision.

Q: Any last word?
A: I do offer my sincere thanks to Yemen Times editor-in-chief for constantly following up the institute's activities as well as other health and environmental issues in our country and I congratulate its chief editor for getting the newspaper scaling greater heights, bringing it to the standard of the other global newspapers. And I once again congratulate Yemen Times staff on the occasion of celebration of the 12th anniversary of the founding of the Yemen Times.
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