The Federal Government has announced plans to build eight state-of-the-art medical simulation centres across the country to enhance medical education and training.
Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, disclosed this during the inauguration of a 19-member implementation and monitoring committee in Abuja.
Alausa noted that the committee’s primary objective was to oversee the initiative and ensure its successful implementation.
The committee’s terms of reference include finalising the proposal, ensuring compliance with goals and objectives, overseeing implementation, and developing quality assurance measures and standard operating procedures.
The establishment of medical simulation centres is a crucial step towards achieving the Federal Government’s vision of making Nigeria a hub of medical excellence.
Alausa expressed optimism that the centres would help to improve the quality of medical education and contribute to the development of the country’s healthcare sector.
The committee is expected to work diligently to ensure the successful implementation of the simulation centres.
Alausa charged the committee to develop modalities for implementation of other recommendations from the reports submitted by the ad hoc committee on medical simulation.
He emphasised the importance of ensuring that the centres are self-financially sustainable.
Alausa urged the committee to develop modalities for implementation and explore social mobility models to achieve financial sustainability.
The Executive Secretary of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund), Sonny Echono, noted that medical simulation is a cornerstone of modern medical education.
“Our universities will greatly benefit from these interventions; they can use the simulation centres not only for training but also as hubs for innovation, developing and testing new medical devices, protocols and training models, ” he said.
The Chairman of the committee, Professor Wale Sulaiman, pledged the committee’s commitment to working diligently to ensure the successful implementation of the simulation centres.
He emphasised the importance of collaboration and stakeholder engagement in achieving the committee’s objectives.
