WhatsApp Advert for Gwanda Nursing School a Scam - ZimFact
Ngoni Mhuruyengwe
September 18, 2019
Zimbabwean trainee nurses
By ZimFact Staff
A  WhatsApp user asked ZimFact to check the authenticity of a message that has been circulating on various WhatsApp groups. The message purports to be an advert for nurse training recruitment by Gwanda Hospital Nursing School in Matebeleland South.
After responding to the advert via the supplied email address, they got this response:
Verdict: Scam
Nursing school recruitment in Zimbabwe
After looking at the two WhatsApp messages, ZimFact concluded that the advert was a scam. This was primarily because the Ministry of Health and Child Care announced that nurse training recruitment was being centralised and digitalised, starting with the September 2019 intake.
The Director of Nursing Services in the Ministry, Cynthia Chasokela, said all nursing schools countrywide are now using this platform.
‘Every nursing school in the country will use this method and we want to urge the public to start using our digital platform for recruitment,’ she said.
Another sign that this WhatsApp advert is a scam is that it still uses the old requirements that have since been revised by the health ministry. Previously, an aspiring candidate could have the required subjects from two sittings. However, this has since been revised to a single sitting.
The applications are also being directed to a google email address instead of an institutional ministry address.
The response to the application requires the candidate to send money through a personal Ecocash number registered to Melody Gwande, which should alert applicants to question the authenticity of the whole process as government departments do not normally use personal Ecocash numbers for official transactions.
How to apply
For those interested in applying for nurse training, the e-recruitment process for a particular intake opens on the Ministry of Health and Child Care website until the deadline. When one accesses that website and clicks on the e-nurse button, this is what they should see on the first image below. If it is one’s first time logging in, click to sign up and the system will go to the second image for registration. The application fee is ZWL10 and not ZWL50 as in the fake advert.
How to spot a scam
While it is not easy to always spot an employment or recruitment scam, here are some tips:
In this instance, the email address provided is not institutional. Anyone can open a gmail account. Although a postal address is provided, the advert clearly states that applications should only be sent by email. The advert gives enough detail to almost fool people into thinking it is genuine. In some instances, people can also watch out for misspelt words and grammar mistakes.
Always do a bit of research. In this instance, a simple internet search will show that nurse recruitment guidelines and processes have been revised. A search of the Ecocash number provided will show that it is a personal number and will give you the name.  With that, one can phone the hospital nursing school to check whether they have a Melody Gwande on staff or if they even have a nursing recruitment advert circulating on social media.
In this scam, the applicant is being asked to pay an interview fee to secure their spot by 21/08/19 which falls a week before the deadline for the applications provided in the first message as 30/08/19. The details are vague, with promises of further information after providing proof of payment. The sign-off message, ‘By Management’, is meant to lend weight and provide legitimacy, but actually reads like a random phrase thrown in just for that purpose.
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