New Belizean Tops Regional Nurse Examinations

The results of the Regional Exam for Nurse Registration were released the week and it shows an impressive performance by the students of the University of Belize.  The Caribbean Examination Council (CXC) administers the exam to graduates who have completed an approved program of studies, among other requirements. Forty-seven students from Belize sat the exam in October of this year and twenty-four of them passed – all UB students.  News Five’s Andrea Polanco tells us more.

Bonaventure Nwangwu, RENR Top Scorer for Belize

“I feel so overwhelmed with joy. I always say it is not me; it is God. In everything that I do, I always put God first. When this year was starting, I asked God for a good year and he gave me a remarkable year.”

Andrea Polanco, Reporting

And what a remarkable year it has been for Bonaventure Nwangwu. The UB student received the highest score for the Regional Exam for Nurse Registration (RENR) for Belize. In October, forty-seven persons from Belize sat the exam and half of the students passed– these twenty-four passes are all from UB. Nwangwu, a Nigerian who came to Belize eight years ago, worked as a security guard and office clerk while taking classes at UB, but his passion to help others fueled his drive to succeed.

Bonaventure Nwangwu

Bonaventure Nwangwu

“When I came to Belize I already had the desire to help people and I have always wondered how I could be of help to others. So, when I came to Belize I decided to go into the profession of nursing because I felt that this is where I could really impact lives positively; so that what my motivation for going into nursing.”

The RENR allows for standardization and improvement of nursing education, as well as exchange, ease-of-movement for Registered Nurses among the countries of the region. The RENR is a challenging exam and Belize’s performance has fluctuated over the years. This year, thirty-seven UB students, including Nwangwu, took the exam and twenty-four of them passed it. To better prepare their students, UB continues to make changes to its programme.

Leolin Castillo

Leolin Castillo, Dean Faculty of Nursing, Allied Health & Social Work, UB

“We have incorporated different teaching strategies and methodologies in the classroom and have diversified the clinical experience for our students. So, the students are now getting a wealth of experience from different sources. From 2010, we have continued our institutional curriculum review process. Dr. Cynthia Thompson, however, started that process, in 2012.Based on what we have received from stakeholders, we are now looking at making some changes to our current Bachelor of Nursing programme. We are collaborating with the UWI in Jamaica to ensure that we are meeting the standard of nursing practice in the region.”

And the education at UB has left its mark on the top nursing student.

Bonaventure Nwangwu

“I had wonderful teachers. The impact they have made in my life is beyond the classroom setting. They have really impacted my life beyond the classes. I hope to go out there with that positive impact I got from my teachers to make a change in the world. Make the world a better place; contribute my own little to make the world a better place. My teachers were so wonderful and if should come back to UB, I want to have the same teachers (laughing).”

And while he is proud of his academic achievement, there is more for the student to celebrate. Nwangwu’s success story as an immigrant to Belize culminated with his citizenship last Friday:

Bonaventure Nwangwu

“This year I graduated from school. I had the highest G.P.A. This year I am getting my nationality as Belizean and this year I took my RENR exam and I had the highest score. So, I am so filled with joy and I give the highest glory to God.   Today, I could call myself a Nigerian-Belizean or also a Belizean because today I am being sworn in as a Belizean after being here for eight years; after working here for eight years and after being in school and graduating in Belize. So, you could say I am a Belizean.”

Reporting for News Five, I’m Andrea Polanco.