McPherson University has been crowned the overall winner of the Florence Nightingale Essay Competition in Ogun State, beating Crescent University and College of Nursing Ilaro (CONIL) to second and third positions respectively.
The Florence Nightingale Essay Competition, which focuses on promoting research, ethical practice, and compassionate leadership among nursing students, was held under the theme “Advancing Nursing Excellence through EvidenceBased Practice and Compassionate Leadership: Reflections on Florence Nightingale’s Enduring Vision.”
According to the University team lead, Mrs. Abiola Adefolaju, a lecturer in the faculty of Nursing Sciences, the competition was discontinued about 10–15 years ago but was revived last year due to its strong educational value.
Organised by the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria, (NMCN), the first stage of the competition, nursing colleges within Ogun State submitted essays, with each institution presenting hree top entries after departmental and external university screening.
McPherson University selected three contestants from an initial pool of seven students who represented it at the state-level contest, held on January 29 in Abeokuta. It featured ten schools and 30 contestants and was co-funded by the Ogun State Ministry of Health and the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria.
The event was attended by key stakeholders, including the Commissioner for Health, the Permanent Secretary, and the Director of Nursing Services. The competition progressed into a five-round quiz covering nursing ethics, management, research, English, and administration. After the quiz stage, the top five students advanced to the final essay presentation.
Samuel Ayebadiepriye Mary, a 500-level nursing student of McPherson University, emerged first overall, while the institution also recorded strong performances across both the essay and quiz segments of the competition. Other members of the McPherson University team included Abiodun Ayooluwa Deborah and Edogun Uwagbale Dave, while two junior students participated as observers in line with the council’s encouragement to groom future contestants.
The university has begun preparations for the zonal round, the date of which is yet to be announced. Vice Chancellor of the University, Prof Francis Igbasan commended the representatives for a job well done, describing it as attestation to the quality of education offered at the university and urged them to excel to the final stage of the competition.
