A FORMER president of the Philippine Medical Association yesterday urged government to consider helping private hospitals increase the salaries and benefits of their nurses to prevent the healthcare workers from seeking jobs abroad or going to government hospitals.
“Some just use private hospitals to get the necessary training and experience before transferring to better paying jobs in government hospitals. Also, Filipino nurses are really in demand abroad now,” Dr. Benito Atienza, vice president of the Philippine Federation of Professional Associations (PFPA), said in a briefing.
He said the shortage of nurses, especially in private hospitals, “is really a big problem right now.”
Atienza’s proposal comes amid the plan of Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa to issue temporary licenses to Nursing board flunkers as a “temporary measure” to address the nurse shortage in the country. — Gerard Naval
