The Department of Nursing Science was established in the University of Zimbabwe within the Faculty of Medicine in 1985.  Nurses in Zimbabwe made a formal representation for its establishment as early as 1977.  The request was re-affirmed in 1980 at the inauguration of the Zimbabwe Nurses Association.

The Department was thus established in response to national health needs and professional developmental needs of nurses.  In view of the major changes in the nursing profession worldwide, the roles and responsibilities of nurses in Zimbabwe, as in other countries, have changed.

In such new and expanding roles, nurses are expected to understand the various community and national dynamics and to plan and implement nursing services which respond to the varied and changing health needs of the Zimbabwean society.