17 Oct 2023

From time-to-time government creates opportunities and funding for research, and Batswana should take advantage of those to build their professional careers, health minister Dr Edwin Dikoloti said at a recent graduation ceremony for six healthcare workers. 

“The field of healthcare is constantly evolving, and to provide the best care, we must stay current with the latest research and advancements,” he said. He applauded the graduates, who out of own volition pursued Global Health Courses in management and Leadership with the University of Washington in partnership with Main Campus Learning Hub. 

Dr Dikoloti urged the graduates to apply skills learnt from the training to improve service delivery. 

He said a well performing health system needed strong leadership that could ensure context specific and informed policies to optimise resources. 

He challenged the graduates to rise to the occasion and avail themselves to serve as effective leaders in the health sector, and to continue to contribute meaningfully regardless of their station of service. 

The minister said their commitment to training spoke to the mindset change, “of Boipelego and self-reliance,” adding that they took up the leadership health courses online by themselves without being compelled to do so, but solely for self-development and growth in the workplace. 

One of the graduates, monitoring and evaluation officer at Greater Selebi-Phikwe District Health Management Team (DHMT), Dr Gabobofwane Maphakwane, who studied Leadership Management and Project Management said the training had improved her service delivery. 

Dr Maphakwane said the training had reinvented a “new her” at her work place, bringing out a strong, re-energised, informed, empowered and accountable health worker. Prof David Sebudubudu, of the University of Botswana, applauded Main Campus coordinators for their innovative idea of “bringing Washington University to Gaborone and taking Batswana to Washington”. “You are doing impressive work; in fact, you are game changers,” he said. One of the Coordinators, Dr Goabaone Rankgoane-Pono said Main Campus provided technical assistance in different areas of global public health such as policy, programme evaluation, training and capacity development, as well as continued professional development. 

She added that as coordinators, they believed the health sector could be transformed through joint efforts across all sectors, and appealed to the Ministry of Health, private sector, and NGOs to offer their employees self-directed learning opportunities. She encouraged more healthcare workers to enrol in the programmes to realise self-development. 

Main Campus Learning Hub is a volunteer initiative by four medical doctors, Mmabaledi Mosweu, Kesegofetse Chabaesele, Masego Gilbert and Rankgoane-Pono. ENDS