JEDDAH, 2 May 2006 — The Saudi German Institute for Nursing and Allied Health Sciences (SGNA) held a two-day meeting with high school students at the Saudi German Hospital Group (SGH).
More than 120 women students attended the first day while almost 600 students from science and arts sections attended the second day.
The meeting, which ended yesterday, aimed at guiding high school students who are about to graduate on choosing the best route in the post-secondary academic environment.
SGH Vice President & CEO Orthopedics Dr. Khaled Batterjee and students of the SGNA presented lectures on the institute and its departments.
“The idea came to me three years ago after Saudization started,” said Batterjee, referring to the national program to replace foreign workers with Saudi ones. “We can’t employ Saudis in health specialties just because they’re Saudis. They should go through a training process.”
Batterjee traveled to German schools to develop a curriculum for the institute. He reduced the credits required from 1,200 to 800 in order to craft a three-year accreditation program for students at the institute.
The institute has seven departments: nursing, pharmacology, surgical operations technology, physiotherapy, radiology, medical laboratories and health administration.
Science students can apply to all specialties in the institute. Students in the arts can only apply to the health administration department.
“Around 450 students are enrolled at the SGNA,” said Fatima Bayoumi, deputy dean of the institute. “Some of the students who apply are jobless bachelor’s-degree holders in non-scientific specialties, such as sociology and history. We interview them and in case of acceptance they go through a preparation period to give them a general background on all the departments and on the English language since all courses are given in English.”
The last semester of the three-year program is an internship. Students spend that semester in hospitals or pharmacies for on-the-job training. The institute also sends 20 of its best men or women students in their last semester of study for a one-month internship to the Charity University Hospital in Germany.
“Our students are qualified to work in many places,” said Batterjee. “Some of them worked in the International Medical Center, Al-Nahdi, Erfan Hospital and others.”
Graduates of the program receive a diploma accredited by the Saudi Organization of Health Sciences. SGNA’s first class will graduate in September this year.
