Guyana produces largest nursing cohort in history as 669 graduate

A total of 669 students have graduated from Guyana’s Professional Nursing Hybrid Programme, marking the largest cohort of professional nurses produced in the country’s history.

The three-year Government scholarship programme, offered through the Ministry of Health, was launched in 2023 to expand access to nursing education and address the growing demand for qualified healthcare workers across all 10 Administrative Regions.

The hybrid programme combines online theoretical instruction, simulation-based skills training, and supervised clinical rotations. Graduates completed 1535 hours of online theory through Coursera, 230 hours of clinical skills training at 12 simulation labs established across the country, and 1995 hours of supervised clinical practice at hospitals and health centres.

The programme attracted significant interest, receiving 1913 applications from Guyana and other countries, including South Africa, Nigeria, Brazil, and several Caribbean nations. Of those applicants, 1028 met the entry requirements and received offer letters, while 856 students enrolled and began training.

The programme recorded a 78.2 per cent completion rate, resulting in the historic graduating class of 669 nurses.

The graduates came from communities across Guyana, including hinterland areas, allowing many students to complete their training without leaving their home regions. Region Four (Demerara-Mahaica) produced the largest number of graduates with 186 nurses, followed by Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) with 75, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) with 62, and Region One (Brima-Waini) with 11 graduates.

The graduates will be eligible for registration with the Nurses and Midwives Council of Guyana and will join the national healthcare workforce as registered nurses.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony held at the National Cultural Centre in Georgetown, Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony encouraged the new nurses to remain committed to continuous learning, professionalism and compassionate patient care.

Anthony told the graduates that becoming a nurse was not the end of their learning journey, but the beginning of a lifelong commitment to improving their skills and applying their knowledge in service to patients.

“If you want to be excellent nurses, you must never stop learning,” Dr Anthony said. “Whatever you learn, you must apply it to your work and to your patients, because this is how people will remember you.”

Shifting to the opposite side, he also had a word for them if they ever dream of becoming terrible nurses.

“The second thing is, if you want to be a terrible nurse, then think of your patient as a number on a bed,” Anthony said. “Some people just go to the bed number five; you have this patient, and you don’t even know the patient’s name. You don’t know what is wrong with them sometimes. You don’t understand their fear.”

The Health Minister said nurses must always recognise the humanity of their patients, noting that behind every person in a hospital bed is a mother, father, grandparent, uncle, or another loved one.
He also encouraged the graduates to be dependable and maintain high standards in their profession, warning against lateness, cutting corners, and failing to respond to patients’ needs.

“Your patients depend on you, and if we are not dependable, then how will we provide the kind of care that people deserve?” he said.

Anthony further reminded the graduates to remain humble despite their achievements, noting that their qualifications should strengthen their commitment to serving others.

“Sometimes when we get our pin and degree, suddenly it is too hard to speak to ordinary people. If we are humble, there will be much more that we can do for our patients,” he said.

He added that nurses must continue embracing innovation while staying connected to the purpose of their profession – providing quality and compassionate healthcare.