Health for all--interpretation of meaning by newly qualified general and staff certified nurses

Zimbabwe adopted P.H.C. approach in 1980 in order to provide equitable distribution of health services and to achieve H.F.A. In 1985 new Nursing education curriculae were introduced to orient student nurses and their teachers to this approach. Between 1986 and 1990 a study was conducted in which 416 newly qualified General and State Certified Nurses answered a comprehensive questionnaire relating to how the nurse training programme prepared them for their work. One question from the self administered questionnaire required them to state their interpretation of H.F.A. and indicate whether they believed that such a goal was achievable by the year 2000. Over 50 pc of respondents from the new curriculae interpreted H.F.A. as physical and financial accessibility of health services and that this goal was not achievable by the year 2000. The interpretation by candidates from the old curriculae was divided among four concepts and over 50% of the respondents believed that the goal was achievable by the target date.