Chartered Institute of Professional Secretarial Staff of Nigeria, LUTH Branch, holds first in-house training

“Wisdom…..comes not from age, but from education and learning (Anton Chekhov)” and Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will (Mahatma Gandhi).

The notion of capacity building is associated with the idea of increasing or developing skills and competencies at an individual and collective level. Capacity building is a much broader concept that should be considered from a systemic perspective, which involves different clusters of individuals, organizations, institutions, and society.

According to the definition of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), capacity in the global context is defined as the ability of individuals and institutions to make and implement decisions and perform functions in an effective, efficient, and sustainable manner.

At the individual level, capacity building refers to the process of changing attitudes and behaviors—imparting knowledge and developing skills while enhancing the benefits of participation, knowledge exchange, and ownership.

READ ALSO :Chartered Institute of Professional Secretarial Staff of Nigeria (CIPSSON)

At the institutional level, it focuses on the overall organizational performance and functioning capabilities, as well as the ability of an organization to adapt to change. At the systemic level, it emphasizes the overall policy framework in which individuals and organizations operate and interact with the external environment.”

As a result of the aforementioned concepts and philosophy, the Chartered Institute of Professional Secretarial Staff of Nigeria (CIPSSON) of Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) chapter held its first in-house training, tagged “Capacity Building: Addressing Collective Errors and Uniform Styles in Secretarial Practice,” dated July 26, 2024, at Luth Private Dining Room, Hall 36.

In line with the mission of CIPSSON for skills development and the mission statement of Lagos Teaching Hospital to “develop professional skilled and motivated staff to provide excellent services training and research that will enable the hospital at large to achieve its targeted goals as a foremost tertiary institution of international standard.

The training was highly welcomed by the Director of Administration, Ms. Omolola Fakeye, to the extent that a memo was circulated from her office to all departmental heads for the release of departmental secretaries, data processing officers, and assistance data processing officers to attend the first CIPSSON LUTH branch’s capacity-building training.

In a welcoming address by Mrs. Ojowuro, the vice president duly stood in the gap for the Luth CIPSSON President and made it known in her address the importance of training and the need to understand system theory that the training will surely be a benefit to ourselves and affect society at large. This was also aligned with the message via phone call from the National CIPSSON President, Alhaji Buhari, who emphasized knowledge building and showed his unfeigned love for the CIPSSON Luth branch for the training, which he hopes will widen and add to participants knowledge.

He therefore urged the CIPSSON-Luth branch to constantly organize such training for the development of the institution.

The Acting Head of the Human Resource Department, Mr. Sola Abiona, who represented the management-motivated secretaries in his brief talk on unity of purpose, putting aside individual differences, and embracing core values in organizations, said that the ability to resolve conflict lies at the hands of the secretaries.

The Luth branch CIPSSON President, Mrs. Gbemisola Olufunke Aigoro, Chief Confidential Secretary, who has worked in various departments in the LUTH with a track record of achievement, presented a paper on “Capacity Building: Addressing Collective Errors and Uniformity Styles in Secretarial Practice,” which highlighted the importance of extenuating collective errors and promoting uniformity in secretarial practice, which is indispensable for institutional or organizational professionalism and efficiency.

Moreover, to be able to ameliorate secretarial practice by actually addressing collective errors and promoting uniformity, it must be a continuous process that requires dedication, commitment, and evaluation of professional excellence.

However, the second speaker, who has retired from the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) as Chief Confidentiality Secretary, is a member of the St. John Ambulance Association, a paramilitary and paramedical organization, an international instructor in first aid as an assistant commissioner, and a senior associate with the association of paramedical practitioners in Nigeria.

Presented on the topic “Office comportment and etiquette” She discussed the importance of office comportment and etiquette and emphasized how these elements contribute to the secretarial profession and a harmonious work environment. As she said, dressing professionally and neatly will enhance our comportment and our conduct. Punctuality and time management must be embraced, while positive attitude and professional behavior must be a secretarial staff watchword.

She further encouraged participants to understand and continuously embrace office etiquette in terms of handling e-mail, phone calls, interaction with colleagues and clients, handling confidential information and documents, and filling out documents professionally.

In her conclusion, she made it known that constant awareness and training and consistent practice of office etiquette rules will bend us to avoid common office errors and improve our comportment in the organization; moreover, developing a uniform code of conduct, consistency in service delivery, and improved efficiency and effectiveness will go a long way in building uniformity in the secretarial profession.

The World Health Organization once defined health as a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. In line with that was this Arabian proverb: “He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything. On that note, health talk was also discussed, while Dr. Orumbie from the Family Medicine Department made it known to the participants on a topic, “Lifestlye Modification,” what to do to make our health optimal and to always ensure that medical checkups are sacrosanct, which is in tandem with the philosophy that “Health is Wealth.” In his talk, he made it known that 17.9 million people die of cardiovascular disease, which makes up 32% of the deaths globally.

Mr. Olopade from the physiotherapy department will further enlighten all the participants on sitting posture with the right chair in the office and some practical exercises starting from the neck, shoulder, upper back, lower back, waist, and ankle that we can do on the job. Such as holding the waist to write “COCONUT” and ankle twisting, which will aid the cardiovascular system to function very well. In conclusion, he advises that standing up for a few minutes within an hour of sitting down is very essential for our health.

Questions were generated from the participants for the presenters, which made it educational and interactive. The training was recorded as a successful one and stands as a remarkably and joyful event for the CIPSSON Luth branch.

The training was greased with the input of LUTH Corporate Affairs Units, headed by Mr. Femi A. Oladiran, by providing projectors, cameras, and other gadgets used to aid the training.

Hery Ford said “Anyone who stops learning is old, Whether at twenty or eighty. Anyonw who keeps learning stays young:
On a final note, if you are a secretary, data processor, business administrator, or other related profession, kindly identify yourself with any Chartered Institute of Professional Secretarial Staff of Nigeria (CIPSSON) in any part of the country for the development of your skills and building capacity.

By: Oguntimehin Oluwafemi John
Public Relation Officer
CIPSSON Luth Branch
Lagos, Nigeria