St. Luke’s Medical Center in QC lacks 127 nurses

MANILA, Philippines — St. Luke’s Medical Center in Quezon City is lacking 127 nurses, its employees’ association president Jao Clumia said on Monday.

“Sa amin sa ngayon, doon sa data ko… 127 na kulang po doon sa plantilla. Nurse pa lang po ‘yun. Hindi pa po kasama yung mga allied [health workers],” Clumia bared in an interview with ANC’s Headstart.

(In our hospital, based on my data… we are lacking 127 in our plantilla, and that’s only with nurses. Allied health workers are not included yet in that number.)

Clumia noted that even though mass hiring would be conducted, there are parents who are reluctant to have their sons or daughters apply amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

He also confirmed that each unit in the hospital is 30 to 40 percent short on manpower.

With this, the nurse-patient ratio increased. For instance, from 1:2 to 1:4 in the intensive care unit and from 1:5-6 to 1:8 or above in the general unit, Clumia explained.

“So, ngayon, dahil kulang ‘yung mga nurses natin, nag-e-extend sila. Takot silang ayaw mag-overtime ‘pag kinausap ng mga manager ‘yan. So, nag-o-overtime. Sa sobrang pagod, ang sasabihin nila — kahit pa sabihin mong well compensated ‘yan — ‘sobrang pagod na, mag-resign na lang ako,’”Clumia shared.

(Now, since we lack nurses, they extend [working hours]. They are afraid of not taking overtime when asked by their manager. So, they work overtime. With their exhaustion, they will say — even though they are well compensated — “I’m exhausted, I’ll just resign.”)

Eighty health workers in St. Luke’s in Quezon City held a mass walkout on Monday morning to protest the government’s delay in disbursing their benefits such as the special risk allowance.

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