Poll: NHS Nurses in England ‘Fear Job Losses or Downgrades as Cuts Bite’

Almost 75,000 nurses expect to lose their jobs, have their hours cut or see their roles downgraded in the next year, according to a survey that highlights the growing impact of the NHS’s financial squeeze.

Five per cent of the NHS in England’s 410,000 nurses – some 20,500 in all – believe their posts will disappear in the next 12 months. Another 24,600 anticipate a cut in hours, while another 28,700 expect to have their jobs reassessed as involving fewer responsibilities.
The findings, extrapolated from a Royal College of Nursing (RCN) poll of 8,000 of its members, have prompted renewed claims that the coalition is not honouring repeated promises to protect the NHS frontline from cuts.

The nurses’ fears come as more acute and mental health trusts across England decide to reduce their nursing workforce as part of efforts to help in the NHS’s £20bn cost-saving drive.

For example, Plymouth hospitals NHS trust plans to cut 281 posts, including 145 nursing jobs, to save £31m this year. The RCN is concerned that 130 existing nursing vacancies at the trust have led to staff shortages in some areas of medical care, and that patient safety could be at risk.

Continue reading at The Guardian

80% of Saudi Men, Women Prefer to be Treated by Foreign Nurses: Survey

Eighty percent of Saudi men and women would rather be treated by a foreign nurse than a local one, according to an Arab News survey.

Twelve percent of around 200 people responded to the online survey said they did not care about the nationality of the nurse, while only 8 percent said they preferred a Saudi to treat them.

“Saudi nurses don’t have people skills and don’t care about your pain and feelings. If I had to describe them using one word, I would say ‘unkind’,” said Mouneera Dawood, a 38-year-old schoolteacher.

“I have been dealing with them for a while and every time I go for a checkup I ask my doctor for a new nurse, until I gave up on Saudis and decided to have a Filipino nurse who was more gentle when dealing with my pregnancy,” she added.

Saudi nurses are in a dilemma between meeting their patients’ needs and conforming with local culture and tradition, according to nursing consultant Dr. Sabah Abuzinadah.

Continue reading at Arab News

Higher pay for nurses sought - Manila Bulletin

MANILA, Philippines -- Progressive solons are pushing the passage of a bill seeking to increase the salary of government nurses to encourage them to continuously serve the country, particularly in poor rural areas.

Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT), Kabataan, Bayan Muna, Gabriela, and Anakpawis party-list groups pushed for the passage of House Bill 5230, which seeks to raise the minimum salary grade level of nurses in public hospitals and other related institutions from Salary Grade 11 to Salary Grade 15.

Under HB 5230, the salary of government nurses will be increased from P15,649 to P24,887, which is equivalent to Salary Grade 15 based on the Nursing Act of 2002 or Republic Act 9173.

ACT party-list Rep. Antonio Tinio, author of HB 5230, said the bill has yet to be taken up for deliberation by the House Committee on Appropriations, headed by Cavite Rep. Joseph Emilio Abaya.

“There is definitely an urgent need to pass the bill. Nurses' salaries must be increased substantially to provide an incentive to stay and lessen the outflow of our nurses to other countries," he said.

Gabriela party-list Reps. Luz Ilagan and Emmie de Jesus also pressed on the need for the immediate passage of HB 5230.

“The bill has been referred to the appropriate committee. But as of now, it has not been taken up. It is dismaying because this has been the struggle of nurses,” Ilagan said.

Another author of the pro-nurses measure, Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casiño said HB 5230 "will rectify the gross neglect of these public servants and encourage them to work in the country instead of going abroad.”

He lamented that instead of easing the plight of public nurses all over the country, the government further aggravated the situation by not allocating enough funds for the implementation of R.A. 9173.

“It was proven to be an empty promise, with the government failing to allocate funds for the law’s implementation,” he said even as he urged the government to start addressing the shortage of working nurses.

To be known as “Government Nurses’ Salary Upgrading Act of 2011,” HB 5230 provides adequate remuneration for government nurses to enhance general welfare as part of the government’s mandate to make available essential health services to all Filipinos.

Among the authors of the bill are party-list Reps.Neri Javier Colmenares (Bayan Muna), Rafael Mariano (Anakpawis),and Raymond Palatino (Kabataan).

Source Manila Bulletin

284 Pinoy Nurses Leave for Japan

The first batch of 284 nurses and caregivers hired under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) leave for Japan on Sunday, Labor Undersecretary Luzviminda Padilla said yesterday.

Several months ago, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services for the recruitment of 1,000 Filipino nurses and caregivers for the next two years. Under the agreement, an initial batch of 200 nurses and 300 caregivers will be recruited to work in hospitals and health institutions in Japan.

The Philippine government aims to have more nurses and caregivers deployed to Japan but hiring is expected to be slow because the prevailing global financial crisis forces health institutions in Japan to stop hiring new workers.

Labor officials said the Japanese government will assess the performance of the first batch deployed after which they will decide if they will hire more Filipino medical workers.

The new hires will undergo a six-month language and culture training, during which they will receive an allowance of 40,000 yen equivalent to P21,000 per month. They will be allowed to stay in Japan for three years, during which they will be allowed to take the licensure examination to become a full-fledged nurse. They will then have the option to stay for an unlimited period in the country to practice their profession based on an upgraded contract with their employer.

Continue reading at Philippine Star

500 Jobs in Japan for Philippine Nurses

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) said that Japan is in need of 500 nurses from the Philippines.

The proposed deployment is under the current Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA). Successful nurses will initially work as assistants and can be fully recognized as registered nurses after they pass the local licensure exams. They are expected to earn ¥200,000 or P200,000 as nursing assistants.

POEA will screen job applicants starting in November.

Job requirements for applicants are the following:

Graduate of Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Passed the board exam in the Philippines
Has 3 years work experience in a hospital
Physically and mentally fit
Qualified nurses can file their applications online at www.poea.gov.ph or www.eregister.poea.gov.ph.

PRC SCRAPS MASS OATH-TAKING FOR NURSES

MANILA, Philippines - No more lavish oath-taking ceremony for newly licensed nurses in the country.

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) has shelved the traditional mass oath-taking for those who passed the licensure examination for nurses.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the PRC decided to scrap the oath-taking for newly licensed nurses as part of the government’s austerity measures.

“Starting with the nursing graduates who successfully passed the July nursing licensure examination, there will be no more mass oath-taking,” Baldoz said.

PRC chairperson Teresita Manzala said the Board of Nursing (BON) issued an official communication withdrawing the request for the usual inspirational and congratulatory messages from top government officials which would have been published in the traditional souvenir program marking the oath-taking of newly registered nurses who hurdled the July 2011 licensure examination.

The BON is the regulatory board for nursing professionals under the PRC.

Manzala said the BON cited the current socio-economic conditions being experienced by Filipino families, especially in the income class where majority of the nurses belong, as main reason for the cancellation of the mass oath-taking.

“While the oath-taking is a requirement of law, the Board (of Nursing) decided to simplify it to save on costs and other expenses relevant to the holding of the traditional mass oath-taking,” she added.

Continue Reading at Philstar

Pinoy Recruitment Agency Faces Inquiry in Oslo

Filipino-owned recruitment agency, Aktive Services, Omsorg og Rekruttering or ASOR recently faced an Oslo City council inquiry to respond to charges of paying Filipino nurses lower salaries than their Norwegian counterparts.

Oslo City health officials and ASOR owners were summoned by the health and service committee last August 17 to answer allegations of social dumping. The Oslo City Audit Office in 2010 investigated ASOR’s business practices, including social dumping or employing Filipino nurses who are paid lower than their Norwegian counterparts.
Also facing the inquiry were Oslo City council member Sylvi Listhaug, who also chairs the city council committee on health and elderly care, and top health officials including city health director Bjørg Månum Andersson and city health chief Åse Snåre.

The officials endured tough questions from the members of the committee led by Erling Folkvord on what actions they have taken since the audit report came out to ensure social dumping is not being practiced by ASOR in providing health services in the city.

The hearing also discussed the findings of the investigation undertaken by the Price WaterhouseCoopers in 2009 to look into the operations of ASOR, including the hiring of Filipino nurses to work for free under the “hospitering” or unpaid training for nurses and charging the city for services that were rendered for free.

Continue reading at ABS-CBN News

Expatriate Nurses in Saudi Arabia Call for Standard Wage in All hospitals

Expatriate nurses working in the Kingdom’s private hospitals and other health institutions want their compensation upgraded to the level of the wages of nurses employed in the government health sector, according to the results of a survey conducted recently by the newly organized Philippine Nurses Association-Eastern Province Saudi Arabia chapter.

Those who responded to the survey felt that there was a need to standardize the salaries and compensation of all expatriate nurses working in Saudi Arabia, irrespective of their nationality.
At present, the compensation of expatriate nurses working in private hospitals is about half of the salary of their counterparts employed in government health institutions. The average monthly salary of foreign nurses working in government hospitals is SR4,500.

The survey indicated that the experience and training of foreign nurses employed in the private health area and government sector are the same and therefore survey respondents felt that the rate and level of their salaries should be uniform and equal.

Continue reading at Saudi Gazette