The Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services from the Ministry of Labour based in Kakamega County, Mr Edward Midimu on 29th July 2021 met the Dean and staff of SONMAPS to relay the good news. According to Mr Midimu, MMUST’s SONMAPS will receive 11 opportunities for students’ attachment which will be spread out such that two (2) positions will be at Kakamega County and the remaining 8 spread across other counties throughout the country.
MMUST Staff from SONMAPS pose for a photograph with Director of Occupational Safety and Health Services from the Ministry of Labour based in Kakamega County, Mr Edward Midimu.
The students will be attached at national offices of Occupational Safety and Health in Kakamega, Bungoma, Vihiga, Kisumu, Homabay, Nairobi and Nakuru among others. The attachment is set to begin in August and will stretch for two (2) months. Notably, MMUST is the second University to offer the course at degree level. The only other University offering the course at degree level is Kenyatta University
Speaking at the event, Mr Midimu elaborated the roles of Occupational Safety and Health Services to various fields of study where suitable. “Occupational Safety and Health Services sector is protected in the constitution and all Health Science students and even staff should be familiarised,” stated Mr Midimu. The articulate Occupational Safety and Health Services professional pointed out that the Kenya National Occupation of Health Safety Association(KNOHSA), is another initiative that seeks to empower national health safety services across the country.
The Dean, Mr Arudo, was pleased that the program was going to transform the school and the University. “The program will definitely increase MMUST’s visibility in the public domain, as well as opening work opportunities for our students with the government health sectors. I encourage MMUST’s Health Sciences students to join KNOHSA as associates to benefit from the networks that such associations avail,” Mr Arudo stated.
The Chair of Department (COD), Community Health Nursing and Extension, Mr Gregory Sakwa, pointed out that MMUST students would benefit immensely from such government programs “We look forward to retaining more students in the program due to the guaranteed practical exposure provided by this arrangement,” said Mr Sakwa.
The move by the Ministry of Labour to provide a platform for industry linkage and practicum for MMUST students in the Department of Community Health Nursing and Extension, will certainly improve MMUST positioning in the Occupational Safety and Health sector. More Occupational Safety and Health professionals are required in every industry. Therefore, students pursuing this degree can hope to land many opportunities in the sector as well as related industries.
