The MSF Academy started implementing the Basic Clinical Nursing Care (BCNC) programme in the Central African Republic in 2019 with staff from four different hospitals, and progressively enrolled more staff and more project sites. It was the first country where the Academy rolled out the BCNC programme.
Some projects ended due to implementation challenges, operational reorganisations, insecurity in the country and difficulties faced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The BCNC programme has been implemented in four sites in the Central African Republic: in Bambari, Bossangoa, Bangassou and Bangui.
In Bangassou, the MSF Academy started the BCNC in November 2023 and there are currently 67 active participants. In Bambari, a second group of participants started the programme in April 2024, and there are currently 40 staff members participating.
In Bangui, the MSF Academy has fully completed the BCNC programme in two of the CHUC wards: the Neonate ward with 42 graduates and the Internal Medicine ward with 52 graduates.
In Bambari, Bossangoa and Bangassou 65 participants finished the programme in 2023.
Following the training of learning companions, ongoing training began in various hospitals supported by MSF in CAR.
In December 2025, the MSF Academy launched the Operating Theatre (OT) Nursing Care programme at the SICA hospital in Bangui. Currently, 18 nurses are enrolled in this specialised training course.
The SICA project aims to provide free, high-quality, person-centred emergency surgical care in orthopaedics and visceral surgery.
The SIBO programme aims to improve patient safety and the quality of surgical care at SICA Hospital. In the Central African Republic, there is currently no specialised training for operating theatre nurses. Participants already work in the operating theatre but have not received specific training in this field. This initiative therefore enables them to develop specialised skills that are essential for supporting safe and effective surgical procedures.
At a patient’s bedside, a learning companion and a learner are reviewing a nursing practice, Central African Republic, 2020.
©Zaza Bamboy
Learners watching a learning video on a tablet, Central African Republic, 2020.
©Zaza Bamboy
