The Democratic Nursing Organisation of SA (DENOSA) in the province says the provincial department has issued a directive to students citing a shortage of staff. Denosa's provincial secretary, Thembinkosi Couter, says the students are forced to be part of the vaccination programme when they are not even covered for compensation should they contract the virus. 

Couter says what makes matters worse is that the nurses are still lagging far behind with their studies and are facing a threat of not being registered by the regulatory body for nursing, the South African Nursing Council (SANC), due to their overstay as a result of delays imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

READ: NW Health Department refutes DENOSA allegations

“The provincial department of health issued a directive that student nurses should be part of the vaccination programme to assist the department at the work front on vaccinating community members. With this directive, the student nurses will be further delayed from meeting the requirements to complete their course. With the above-mentioned reasons, amongst others, Denosa student movement in the North West will not agree to the exploitation of the student nurses as a labour force which is going to endanger their livelihoods without any protection or compensation,” Couter adds.

Meanwhile, the North West Department of Health has brushed off the allegations.

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