Senate Press Release: Legarda Seeks Inquiry into Concerns of Nurses and their Profession
Senate of the Philippines, 15th Congress
Press Release
December 8, 2010
Legarda Seeks Inquiry into Concerns of Nurses and Their Profession
Senator Loren Legarda has sought an inquiry into urgent concerns of Filipino nurses and the nursing profession, noting that the problems faced by the country’s health professionals reflect a failure on the part of government to promote the people’s right to health.
Through Senate Resolution No. 304, Legarda urged the Senate Committee on Health and Demography to conduct an investigation on the serious concerns of the country’s nursing sector with the end in view of protecting the rights of nurses and their profession.
“Our nurses are hindered from efficiently performing their duties as primary health care providers. One of the most serious concerns is the anomaly in the hiring of nurses who, instead of getting remuneration for their work, have to pay in exchange for work certification and training experience,” Legarda said.
The Senator also voiced concern on the lack of plantilla positions for nurses in government hospitals; contractualization of nurses; lack of supervision over the condition of Filipino nurses working abroad resulting to delayed assistance; and the non-implementation of decent wage and due benefits according to law.
Legarda explained that under the Nursing Law of 2002 (RA 9173) and the Magna Carta of Public Health Workers (RA 7305), the entry salary of a nurse in the government should be at Salary Grade 15 or about Php25,000, and that they are entitled to benefits such as hazard pay, subsistence allowance and night shift differential.
She also explained that the lack of budget for the health sector affects the delivery of health services especially for the very poor and those in far-flung communities.
“The government has to take immediate, concrete steps to resolve these problems that affect our health workers so that they can efficiently fulfill their duties without having to worry about how to make ends meet,” Legarda said.
“Unless we provide the adequate protection to our nurses, we cannot enforce the guarantees expressed in the 1987 Constitution to promote the people’s right to health, much less achieve the Millennium Development Goals, to which we have committed,” she concluded.
Source: http://www.senate.gov.ph/press_release/2010/1208_legarda1.asp
I hope the gov’t. will give some focus on this matter, there are thousands of RN’s there who seeks for jobs in the hospitals but cannot find one…hope we cna practice our profession soon not in any other jobs…
I agree wid senator legarda,i hope that our gov’t. will pay attention immediately as for nurses concerns/healthcare providers..,,.
consuelo de bobolang yan..u may have forgotten her statement when she was aspiring for president?.kahit sinong nurse ipapakulong nya even for a minute error…
I am a nurse in the Philipines until now I got no work and I won’t go for a volunteer job. I paid so much during my school days.
If Loren Legarda will pursue in implementing or reviewing that RA9173. it would be futile since it has to have its own budget. Where would the government get the budget? Cheap PhilHealth Insurance?
What I would like for senator Legarda to do is, just control all the prices together with your o-senator and congress so that every prices would be affordable that even a “kasambahay” can afford to puchase a laptop………
@onat –
Sadly, I don’t see this happening in our lifetime.
Ito po ay isang sigaw ng nanay na may 2 anak na license nurse na hanggang ngayon walang trabaho at isang volunteer nurse. Naawa ako sa mga bata masakit para sa akin makita na unti-unting nawawalan ng pag asa ang mga bata. Ang mga anak ko ay matalino at mababait na bata. Ayaw ko silang maging Nufrse perso sila ang may gusto kasi their passion is in the sick.
Masakit para sa isang magulang ang makita mo ang anak mo ay naghihirapang kalooban. Sana magkaroon naman n g awa ang mga nakaupo ngayon lalo na sa Department of Labor. Maghanap kayo ng paraan paano nyo bigyan ng trabaho ang kabataan. Puede ba gamitin nyo ang mga utak nyo???? Papaano maging qualified ang mga kabataan dahil the recruitment agency is asking for 2 to 3 years experience HOW? kung wala ngang mapapasukan dito sa Pilipinas. Makipag ugnayan kaya kayo sa Government ng mga bansang nanganga ilangan ng Nurses na gawin trainee suila doon. Kung hindi nyo kaya, puede ba AKO na lang? Bigyan nyo ako ng chance na tumulong. Im tired of seeing these government officials, always investagation, walang nangyayari.
MAAWA NAMAN KAYO. Yang mga old nurses na nasa hospitals pa puede ba paretire nyo na. Para mapalitan ng mga bata? ESPECIALLY SA GOVERNMENT HOSPITALS, Masusungit na, Maldita pa . . umalis na kayo dyan bigay nyo sa mga bata.
Hindi lang kayo ang citizen ng Pilipinas. . Ako ay nagrereklamo kasi taxper ako mga anak ko ni minsan hindi nag public school kaya wala kaming privilege sa Education ng bansa… nagpakahirap ako mapaaral ko lang mga anak ko. Nagbabayad pa ako buwis kulang pa nga sa amin pamilya.
Mga kurakot sa gobyerno, mayu araw din kayo, Dios na maghusga sainyo. Isumpa ang lahi nyo. . .;
naku tatakbo lang yang si legarda..di nanalo nung nakaraang election dahil binatikos ng mga RN’s…di kasi nag iisip bago magsalita…yan tuloy..kulelat!
wala pa rin namang pagbabago ang government.. tsk
dapat solusyon ang ipahayag nya..hindi puro salita.
i agree with shiela flores..yang mga nsa hospital na yahn..pagkayayabang sa mga volunteer..ibibigay nila ang trabaho nila sa mga volunteer,hindi lang yun magsusungit at magtataray sila sa mga volunteer na mga nagsibayad sa hospital para sa training dw??at sila yung iniiwan sa mga pasyente para gwain lahat ng trabaho nila..kaya wak kayongmayabang mga senior nurse.wag kayong abusado..wag kayo mangapi at magyabang na may maayos kayo trabaho.tse!!!
nepotism stil exist..plakasan backer system… in d game of nursing life ITS NOT WHAT YOU KNOW..ITS WHOM YOU KNOW… hay…
kailan pa ba to mangyayari ? ..puro pa pogi lang ang ginagawa ng mga tao sa gobyerno.