Hemas opens school of Nursing at Ragama

Hemas Hospitals (Pvt) Ltd recently launched a School of Nursing, a fully-fledged patient care and nurses training facility at Delpe in Ragama. Run by the Associated College of Health Sciences (ACHS), the Nursing School’s first batch comprises 70 student nurses (both male and female), who will undergo an intensive three year training conducted by experienced patient care training professionals, the company said.

CEO Hemas Hospitals Pvt Ltd Dr. Kithsiri Edirisinghe said that the training will be conducted according to a curriculum approved by the Ministry of Health and formulated to international standards. “The main objective of this training programme is to train nurses who are technically sound and with caring personalities. The student nurses were chosen from nearly 2000 applicants from all over the country and were put through a very strenuous interview which included an English test. We’re also making all efforts to develop their interpersonal skills, professional skills and ethical behaviour”.

Chief Guest on the occasion, Director, Private Sector Health Development of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Amal Harsha said it was encouraging to see private sector participation of this nature which ensures quality in service. He added that the Hemas venture was most welcome at this moment in time, and would take the health care sector to greater heights.

CEO Hemas Holdings Husein Esufally said that the establishment of the Nursing School was in the Hemas long tradition of caring and welfare. “The nursing profession is a noble profession whose members are caregivers. We want to give them the dignity and status they richly deserve. This Nursing School will empower them to be fully fledged health care professionals who will be enrolled at Hemas Hospitals which will operate according to international standards. Hemas Hospitals will also support nurses with strong qualifications to obtain overseas placement with their joint venture partner Columbia Asia which operates many hospitals in the Asian region,” he was quoted as saying in a press release.

Hemas Hospitals Pvt Ltd is a joint venture between Hemas Holdings Ltd and Columbia Pacific Healthcare Sdn Bhd, Malaysia. The hospital will commence operations in 2008, and will focus on providing patient-centric, affordable, high quality health services to fast growing suburban communities. Hemas Holdings Ltd is one of Sri Lanka's top conglomerates with a focus on five key sectors - FMCG, Healthcare, Transportation, Leisure and Strategic Investments.