NSCC gets approval to implement National Occupational Standard on Geriatric Social Care for Care Givers to Older Persons in Nigeria
Oru Leonard
National Senior Citizens Centre (NSCC), gets approval of the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE), to implement completed and validated National Occupational Standard in Geriatric Social Care to care givers to older persons in Nigeria.
NSCC’s request to the National Board for Technical Education is for Geriatric social care to be included in the National Skills Qualification Framework with identified and recognized levels of Certifications.
The approval which came with a commendation by NBTE is to provide quality and standardized national trainings of persons desirous to serve older persons in the capacities as skilled care givers, using accredited faculty, prescribed pedagogy and content which are in line with International benchmark.
NSCC Director General, Dr Emem Omokaro says it is historic as Nigeria for the first time admits care giving to older persons as a skill in the National Skills Qualification Framework and recognizes as well as identifies levels one to five of certifications in care giving to older persons, ensuring established career paths for trained/skilled care givers with a system for building a recognized paid workforce in care.
Omokaro said the recognized certifications has the potentials to progressively attain levels to be integrated in the civil service cadre and also a national and international skills certification at the end of the training of care givers.
She said the effort already heralded by the international community as Nigeria builds a National Standardized Geriatric Social Care Quality Assurance System not only to stem elder abuse but to open up a regulated care Industry.
Omokaro is certain that all organizations and individuals running parallel and fragmented programs in Care giving would serve the learners well if these efforts are now suspended and aligned with NSCC-NBTE validated process including opportunity to obtain National Skill Certifications with Career Progress, recognizable Nationally and Internationally.
This system has opened up discussion Avenue for Social insurance coverage (social/ healthcare from the vulnerable fund) for older persons in long term care situation, she emphasized.
The National Senior Citizens Centre and the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, all relevant expert groups have developed national standards for accrediting care settings/facilities and standards for accrediting training centres/providers, standard operating procedures for care facilities as well as policy and regulatory frameworks on geriatric social care quality assurance.
This is coming after months of consensus building, drafting workshops, and validation meetings with relevant MDAs, Development partners particularly United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, experts in Gerontology, Geriatrics, Nursing, Social Works, Public, Primary, Community and Family health practitioners.
Others involved in the process are, Brain health experts, Psychologist, Psychiatrists, Physiotherapists, legal practitioners, traditional rulers, relevant civil society, current practitioners in care giving as well as a few experienced care facilities operators in Nigeria and in the diaspora, most representing national associations.
NSCC submitted the validated draft of the National Benchmark and Minimum Standards in Curriculum (National Occupational Standard) for Training in Geriatric Social Care to the National Board for Technical Education for formatting and final validation.
NSCC, having received completed National Occupational Standard (NOS) and in accordance with the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) is setting up a National Geriatric Social Care Skills Council which would be responsible for conducting assessments and review of Geriatric Social Care Quality Assurance in Nigeria.
NBTE as a Regulatory Agency on technical education has entered all into their skills formatting on Occupational Standards; identifying awarding bodies; nature and composition of Geriatric skills Council by NSCC, Certification etc.
(NSCC Media)
