DOH: Employing unlicensed nurses won't affect healthcare quality in gov't hospitals

Health Secretary Ted Herbosa said on Thursday that the quality of healthcare in government hospitals will not decrease amid the Health Department's plan to employ unlicensed nursing graduates.

Herbosa explained that hospitals have "patient safety guidelines" which can verify the capabilities of nurses.

“‘Wag magalala ‘yung ating mga kababayan na kahit pumasok itong mga board eligible o kukuha pa lang ng board ay maapektuhan ang aruga sa kanila. Hindi po. Hindi natin pababayaan na bumaba ang kalidad at safety ng ating pag-alaga sa ating mga public hospitals,” Herbosa said in an Unang Balita interview.

(The public should not worry even if these board-eligible or graduates about to take the board will enter government hospitals. Their healthcare will not be affected. We will not let the safety and healthcare quality in public hospitals decline.)

Herbosa previously said they are planning to hire nursing graduates who scored 70-74% in the board exam even though they flunked, given that they retake and pass the board exam after a certain period of time.

According to Herbosa, temporary licensed nurses will have to render up to four-year return service to a government hospital after they pass their board exam before they are allowed to go abroad.

This was his temporary solution to address the exodus of nurses who are opting for better paying jobs abroad.

He said if this issue is not addressed, he sees the number of nurses working in the Philippines to be exhausted in three to five years.

Herbosa also emphasized that nurses with temporary licenses will still be liable if they commit medical lapses.

“Definitely may liability, syempre hahabulin pa rin ‘yan. Wala namang immunity ‘yan kahit naman lisensyado ka na, pwede pa ring habulin kapag ikaw ay nagkamali. Pareho lang ang liability niyan lalo na kung talagang maling mali,” he said.

(There is definitely liability, and of course that will still be pursued. Even licensed nurses are liable if they make a mistake. They have the same liability, especially if what they did was really wrong.)

The Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) and the Filipino Nurses United (FNU) both expressed disapproval of the proposal, saying that the DOH should focus on hiring registered nurses instead. given that around 120,000 of them are not currently working in the field of nursing. —Giselle Ombay/ VAL, GMA Integrated News