• 850 graduates to be recruited 

Two gazette notifications are scheduled to be issued on 18 July, to facilitate the appointment of nursing offices to fill existing vacancies, the Minister of Health and Mass Media, Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa has announced.

Speaking at the weekly Cabinet of Ministers press briefing held yesterday (15), he stated that steps will be taken to recruit and provide training to 2,650 students who sat for the General Certificate of Education Advanced Level (G.C.E. A/L) Examination in 2020, 2021, and 2022 as nurses, along with 850 individuals who completed nursing degrees. “We are currently facing a shortage of nursing staff. In the Northern Province alone, there are 33 rural hospitals without a single nurse,” he said. “To address this, we will issue a gazette notification on 18 July to recruit 2,650 student nurses from eligible candidates who sat for the G.C.E. A/L Examinations in 2020, 2021, and 2022. These individuals will have the opportunity to apply for nurse training programmes. In addition, we will recruit 850 graduates who have previously obtained nursing degrees into the public service. A separate gazette notification will be issued for this purpose on the same day,” he added.

Accordingly, the Ministry of Health will proceed with the dual recruitment drive to both commence training for new candidates and absorb qualified graduates into the nursing workforce.