The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) Ghana has asked all Nursing and Midwifery training institutions to upgrade their diploma training to bachelor degree programmes.

The Registrar of the Council, Felix Nyante, said the upgrade would improve nursing and midwifery care to meet the changing healthcare needs of the public.

He was speaking at a credentialing forum held by the Council to assess and validate the operating standards of training institutions before accrediting them.

Mr Nyante said credentialing helped to determine the issues to be addressed in the institutions and promoted the implementation of quality improvement mechanisms.

Plans were afoot to categorise nursing and midwifery training institutions and universities, he stated, to introduce healthy competition and challenge them to strive for execellence.

A five- member panel at the forum assessed the Catholic University College; and the FLOSAM Institute of Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Sciences.

Issues identified included expanding their computer laboratories, providing students with more spacious classrooms and providing adequate office cabinets for tutors.