BY GEORGINA KEKEA
PLANS are underway for the restoration of the old malaria building at Kukum Campus.
Commonly known as SIMTRI to locals, the building has been left idle for quite some time already.
However since repossessing the area when it became a university, School of Nursing has high hopes to restore it for their training needs.
Speaking to Island Sun, Dean, School of Nursing, Verzilyn Isom says there is already a modern design for the building.
“Suppose the building completes, this will be one of the best in the Pacific with the current design,” she said.
Isom said School of Nursing had been moving at a fast pace except infrastructure development.
She said lack of infrastructure and facilities continue to hinder their progress.
She said it is quite challenging for them to run their classes.
Also Isom said that despite having a design for the restoration of the former SIMTRI building, they still lack the finances to carry out construction work.
She said all their development projects had been submitted to the government but there are also other ongoing projects that the local university has that it is not yet possible for them to seek support from the government.
“With any new development for next year, it will not be possible. We have sat and discussed the possible avenues where we can seek funds from donors to assist us restore the old building.”
Isom said what the School of Nursing is proposing in the new building are tutorial rooms, practical laboratory, nutrition kitchen, occupational therapy for disabled people, clinical laboratory amongst other needs.
She said the building is quite complex but in the long run, will assist future nurses in their training. She said the building itself will expect to cost more than SBD60 million.
“The design itself costs us three to four million, but in the long run, this should be a facility which the university will benefit from.
“Also intakes for nursing classes will not be from Solomon Islands only but also from other regional countries,” Isom said.
She said the issue of limited resources has dissuaded the university from getting intakes from regional countries.
