Deans of nursing schools ask PRC to dig deeper into exam leakage

A group of nursing school deans asked the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) yesterday to dig deeper into the alleged leakage in the June 2006 licensure examination for nurses.

Dean Carmelita Divinagracia, president of the Association of Deans of Philippine Colleges of Nursing (ADPCN), said it is not enough that the PRC had established that two members of its Board of Nursing were involved in an examination leakage.

"We are happy that the PRC has given light on the alleged leakage issue," she told The STAR. "But I believe that the PRC should continue its investigation. It must do a follow up on why the leakage has been done or who are the other people involved."

Divinagracia said the PRC should ascertain why the leakage took place and find out who are the other people involved in the anomaly.

She said while the PRC does not have control over a review center, it can sanction the nurses who might be behind the center.

"I really hope this will not happen again because it might affect the deployment of Filipino nurses abroad," she said.

Several nursing students in Baguio City complained that R.A. Gapuz Review Center in that city leaked questions to its reviewees so they could pass last month’s board examination for nurses.

The questions allegedly came from examiners of the Philippine Nursing Board. A fact-finding committee was created by the PRC to look into the incident. It is composed of Commissioners Leonor Tripon-Rosero, Avelina de la Rea and Renato Valdecantos.

The committee confirmed that "there was a leakage of test questions from the manuscripts of two members of the Board of Nursing before the actual conduct of the June 11 and 12, 2006 Nurses’ Licensure Examination."

The PRC recommended the filing of administrative charges against the two members of the Board of Nursing.

"This leakage irregularity shall be referred to the National Bureau of Investigation for its own investigation and determination of all the persons and parties involved and their criminal prosecution under the law," the PRC said.

In Baguio City, the complainants said they are unhappy with the PRC’s findings on the alleged examination leakage.

"They did not name them," said lawyer Kissack Gabaen who had been assisting the more than 100 complainants from different schools in the city.

"It keeps everybody guessing who among the six members of the BoN they are talking about. The resolution of the PRC is a matter they knew and knew all along."

Gabaen expressed dismay over "the kid glove treatment" on the erring Board of Nursing members. "They were not even charged administratively," he said.

"It is a slap on the wrist. What the complainants want is to dig deeper into the scam like finding out how deep is the involvement of George Cordero, the national president of the Philippine Nurses Association."

Cordero called the leaders of the different nursing associations in Northern Luzon to suppress any complaint regarding the alleged leakage, Gabaen said.

Last week, Gabaen went to the Baguio City Council to seek its intervention in the alleged anomaly.

Meanwhile, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) recently named a new set of members for the Technical Committee for Nursing Education (TCNE).

In a statement yesterday, CHED said with this new composition, the agency has now spread membership to include representatives from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The new set of members comes from Vigan, Ilocos Sur in Northern Luzon and Cagayan de Oro City in Mindanao.

The TCNE will be chaired by Dr. Maria Teresita Sy-Sinda, College of Nursing dean of Silliman University in Dumaguete City.

Other members of the technical committee are: Dean Ma. Chona  Palomares of the College of Nursing of Liceo de Cagayan in Cagayan de Oro City, and Dr. Marciana de Vera, a senior faculty member at the College of Nursing of the University of Northern Philippines in Vigan, Ilocos Sur.

The CHED said the Board of Nursing and the Association of Deans and Colleges of Nursing Inc. are represented by Dr. Eufemia Octaviano and Dr. Ramona Heidi Palad, respectively.

George Cordero, Philippine Nurses Association president, gave way to Dr. Marlyn Yap, PNA executive vice president, to represent the association in the technical committee.

The new team of experts is expected to assist CHED in further advancing the quality of nursing education to boost the competitiveness of Filipino nurses here and abroad, the CHED said.

Last July 10, CHED chairman Dr. Carlito Puno said they will be replacing as soon as possible the chairman and six members of the TCNE who resigned recently due to differences between the commission and the committee on major policy issues.

"We will replace them," said Puno during a press conference at the CHED central office in Pasig City.

"We assure the public it will not have an adverse effect on the quality of nursing education. All seven come from Metro Manila. We are raising the issue of representation."

The TCNE chairwoman and members who resigned recently were chairwoman Marilyn Lorenzo, and members Carmelita Divinagracia, Remedios Fernandez, Amelia Rosales, Zylma Sanchez, Ma. Rita Tamse, and Glenda Vargas.

Lorenzo and Fernandez are from the University of the Philippines, Divinagracia the University of the East, and Vargas from the University of Santo Tomas.

The group had questioned the possible appointment to the TCNE of Cordero, PNA president, whom it said owns a hospital, the Philippine College of Health Sciences in Manila.

Cordero would have a conflict of interest if he is appointed to the committee, the group added. — Sheila Crisostomo, Artemio Dumlao, Sandy Araneta