Changing Lives at the School of Nursing in Mungeli

Changing Lives at the School of Nursing in Mungeli

The Christian Hospital has been serving the community of Mungeli and the surrounding rural villages in many ways for the past 116 years. A new addition is the School of Nursing, which enrolled its first class of 19 students in the fall of 2011. A second class of 20 enrolled in the fall of 2012….

The Christian Hospital has been serving the community of Mungeli and the surrounding rural villages in many ways for the past 116 years.  A new addition is the School of Nursing, which enrolled its first class of 19 students in the fall of 2011.  A second class of 20 enrolled in the fall of 2012.  After their initial classwork and orientation, the nurses acknowledge the beginning of their clinical work with a “Capping Celebration” held each year in early February.  This year’s guest of honor was Dr. Cynda Johnson, Founding Dean and President of the new Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine.  In her remarks, Dr. Johnson compared the capping ceremony to the “white coat ceremony” observed in most medical schools.  The capping ceremony involves the whole community as the parents, friends, and local residents celebrate not only the education achievement of these young women but also the addition of new opportunities for training and employment, often for young women who would not otherwise have the opportunity to further their education and find a career. After returning from Mungeli, Rev. Landa Simmons shared a story about one of the student nurses whom she met during her visit:

“Ms. Pankajini Tandi is a second year nursing student at the Christian Hospital Mungeli School of Nursing.  Her beautiful smile and warm manner graces every room she enters.  It’s impossible not to notice her in chapel, in the wards, and around the campus of the hospital.  I asked Ms. Alka Prasad, the principal of the nursing school, to tell me more about her.   According to Ms. Prasad, Pankajini always wanted to be a nurse, but, due to financial difficulties she could not afford nursing school after completing her ‘class 12th’  (high school) in 2005.

For five years she worked as a nurse’s aide in the Jagdishpur mission hospital. She was very passionate to become a nurse, so when she heard that the Christian Hospital was opening a nursing school with greatly reduced tuition, she immediately applied and became a member of the very first class of students in the new Nursing School. She received her cap with the first class of student nurses in February 2012.   Principal Prasad reports that Ms. Tandi is an excellent student and currently ranked third in her class.

The total cost of the Christian Hospital Mungeli nursing program is Rs. 94400.00/  ($1888) while other private Indian nursing schools cost an average of Rs.30,0000.00  to 30,5000.00 ($6000). 

Admission to the Christian Hospital Mungeli School of Nursing is limited to men and women from the state of Chhattisgarh where the hospital is located, one of the poorest states in India.” 

We give God thanks for the work of Christian Hospital Mungeli, and especially for those who are being empowered to use their gifts and training to serve their community.