Vitals Global Healthcare – the new private operator of St Luke’s, Gozo and Karin Grech hospitals – will be investing €2m in a nursing degree, aimed at tackling the shortage of nursing staff. VGH signed an agreement with MCAST this morning that will see a new nursing degree established in collaboration with Northumbria University. Health minister Chris Fearne and education minister Evarist Bartolo were both present at the signing of the agreement.

In a statement, VGH said that the degree will meet all of the requirements of the EU Directive for General Nursing, the Malta Council for Nurses and Midwives’ Scope of Professional Practice and the Malta Council for Nurses and Midwives’ Code of Ethics.

“Northumbria’s nursing programmes are widely considered to be the best in the United Kingdom and are the first in the country to be accredited by the Royal College of Nursing, in addition to being approved by the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council,” read the statement.

According to the hospital operator, the programme will initially take in 30 new students per year, with students receiving three years of full-time education and training that will lead to a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing Studies at 180 credits. Moreover, VGH said that in the first year, the programme will be taught on MCAST facilities, until works on a nurse skilling facility at St Luke’s are completed.

VGH CEO, Armin Ernst, speaking at the signing, said that the shortage in the nursing sector presents one of the biggest challenges in healthcare across the world. “By setting up a world class degree, we will attract more nursing students to the profession, working to tackle this shortage directly,” he said, adding that “it is as known fact that healthcare students often develop an emotional bond with the hospitals where they receive the clinical part of their education, which makes us confident that a significant number of these students will chose to stay on and work at hospitals across Malta and Gozo, once they complete their education.

Furthermore, Ernst said that foreigners applying for these courses will also be trained in the Maltese language in order to minimise any possible language barriers.

“Education and high level training of staff are important to our organisation, as we continue to strive towards improving patient care and upping standards across the board. We envisage that this €2m will further contribute towards making Malta a leader in Healthcare services,” he concluded.