Marcos orders CHED to address nurse shortage

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos has ordered the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) to fix the shortage of nurses caused by migration to countries that offer higher pay.

During a meeting with the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) health care sector group in Malacañang last Wednesday, Marcos said all the presidents and prime ministers he has spoken to are asking for more nurses from the Philippines.

“We have to be clever about the health care manpower. Our nurses are the best, the whole world is our rival here,” the President said, referring to nurses moving to other countries for better pay.

Responding to Marcos, CHED Chairman Prospero de Vera III said the commission is already carrying out measures to address the lack of nurses. They include retooling board non-passers, adopting a nursing curriculum with exit credentials, redirecting non-practicing nurses and conducting exchange programs with other countries.

De Vera noted that under the nursing curriculum with exit credentials, students have several options – exit at the end of level I or II, obtain the certificate or diploma in nursing, or continue and finish the four-year nursing program to become a registered nurse.

CHED is also working on a flexible short-term master’s program to address the lack of instructors in nursing and medical schools, he added.

Department of Health (DOH) officer-in-charge Undersecretary Rosario Vergeire said her agency is assessing the status of the proposed Magna Carta for Public Health Care Workers and Philippine Nursing Act and is studying the standardization of salaries of health care workers.

“The PSAC will also study the feasibility of establishing remote diagnostics centers and assess new medical technologies and their costs,” Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Garafil said.

In the same meeting, Marcos called for enhanced local medicine production and emphasized the need to ensure the availability of drugs during emergencies.

“Let’s maximize the local production. The initial reason why this came up is the supply problems that we encountered during the lockdowns so we need to be prepared. We should be able to produce the local supply of essential medicines,” he said.

Garafil said the DOH and Food and Drug Administration would work with the private sector to identify medicines that can be produced locally and maximize the use of the capacity of local pharmaceutical manufacturers to produce basic medicines like anti-tuberculosis drugs for poor patients.

‘Nurse para sa Bayan’

A return service program for those graduated from state universities and colleges (SUCs) is being considered as a possible solution to address the shortage of nurses in Philippine hospitals, according to CHED.

“We will discuss with the state universities and colleges a possible return service program for nurses who are eligible because their tuition and miscellaneous fees are paid by government,” De Vera said.

“We can also provide scholarships to nursing students for additional stipends… we can attach a return service to that,” he said.

De Vera also noted proposals to pass a law similar to Republic Act 11509 or the Doktor Para sa Bayan Act, which established a medical scholarship and return service program for students in SUCs or partner private higher education institutions.

“If we have a ‘Nurse Para sa Bayan’ law that provides scholarships, it has a return service. That is the direction that can be pursued,” he added.

National Education Council

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian has re-filed a bill seeking to create the National Education Council (NEDCO) to improve the harmonization of policies between the three education sub-sectors and raise the quality of education in the country.

Gatchalian said Senate Bill No. 2017 or the National Education Council Act creates the NEDCO to institutionalize a system of national coordination, planning, monitoring, evaluation and management among the DepEd, CHED and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

Gatchalian said the proposed measure seeks the formulation of a national education agenda, which shall be anchored on national development plans. He added the NEDCO’s powers and functions will include the implementation of an action agenda for the development of the country’s capacity for, and success in education as measured by indices and measures.

Under the proposed measure, the President will be the chairperson of NEDCO while the DepEd secretary, CHED chairperson, and TESDA director-general will serve as co-chairs. Other members of the Council will include the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and selected members of the Cabinet. — Janvic Mateo, Cecille Suerte Felipe