The College of Health Sciences (COHES) has embarked on strengthening the implementation of Competency Based Education and Training (CBET) to enhance the preparation of health professionals equipped with practical skills and competencies required in the workplace.
To advance this agenda, COHES held a one-day sensitization workshop on Wednesday, August 5, 2026, at the JKUAT Main Campus in Juja, bringing together academic staff and technical staff from skills laboratories and teaching laboratories.
Speaking at the opening session, COHES Principal, Dr. Reuben Thuo, noted that the competency-based approach aligns with the training model the college has long embraced, particularly through its emphasis on practical skills and workplace readiness.
COHES students undergo extensive clinical rotations and practical placements in teaching and referral hospitals, including Mama Lucy Kibaki Hospital, Kenyatta National Hospital and Gatundu Level 5 Hospital, among other health facilities, enabling them to apply classroom knowledge in real-world healthcare settings.
“Competency-Based Education (CBE) is what we have been doing in our schools,” said Dr. Thuo, noting, the college’s strong emphasis on experiential learning has contributed to the smooth transition of its graduates into professional practice.
He said, the shift towards a more structured competency-based framework will further strengthen existing training approaches by ensuring students consistently demonstrate the knowledge, skills and professional attributes required in the workplace.
Dr. Thuo stated that some COHES staff members were already advancing this agenda through training in Advanced Clinical Education, which equips educators with skills to integrate teaching and learning in clinical settings. Through this approach, educators identify learning gaps while engaging with students and provide targeted support to improve competency development.
Meanwhile, the guest speaker, Dr. Johnstone Ochuma, Deputy Director, Teacher Education at the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD), highlighted the need for institutions to prepare adequately for the implementation of the new Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) and CBET approaches.
Dr. Ochuma said, that today’s learners are increasingly self-directed, globally aware, problem solvers, and digitally literate, requiring a shift from traditional lecture-based teaching approaches to transformative pedagogy that incorporates diverse learning methods.
“The 21st-century learner comes with a different set of expectations and experiences; therefore, conventional delivery of lectures alone may not adequately address their learning needs,” he said, emphasizing the need for innovative teaching strategies.
He explained that the implementation of competency-based approaches follows a systematic curriculum design process that involves mapping competencies to industry standards. He noted that occupational standards should be aligned across institutions to ensure consistency in the competencies expected from graduates, while universities retain the flexibility to incorporate additional content relevant to their contexts.
Dr. Ochuma further observed that course duration may change depending on curriculum content, with institutions reviewing and eliminating obsolete content while strengthening relevant competencies. He emphasized the importance of closer collaboration between universities and industry to ensure training programmes respond to workforce needs.
The workshop also featured presentations from COHES CBET Champions, led by Mr. James Okumu from the School of Nursing, who outlined the way forward in strengthening competency-based training within the College. He highlighted the need to enhance practical training facilities, expand the use of simulation-based learning, promote team-based learning and adopt diverse assessment approaches that effectively measure students’ competencies.
COHES CBET Champions include; Dr. Grace Mbuthia (Nursing), Dr. George Makaliwa and Dr. Martin Ogwang (Public Health), Dr. Sepha Mabeya (Biomedical Sciences), and Dr. Linus Wafula and Dr. Isaac Kimani (Pharmacy).
According to Dr. Ochuma, the benefits of CBET include; faster progression and improved employability skills for students, production of job-ready graduates for employers, and increased institutional enrolment due to the relevance and responsiveness of training programmes.
The sensitization workshop aligns with the 2025 – 2026 implementation timeline for awareness creation and policy development, which seeks to sensitize university leadership and staff while strengthening institutional readiness for the adoption of competency-based approaches.
