Hard times call for austere rites for new nurses

No more grand and costly mass oath-taking rites for new nurses beginning this year.

Saying that they empathized with Filipino families having to cope with the hard times, especially the middle-income class to which the majority of nurses belong, the Board of Nursing of the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announced it was scrapping the usual mass oath-taking ceremonies for newly registered nurses.

The oath-taking, which is required under the law, will instead be marked by simple rites, either individually or by group upon registration for nurse licenses with the PRC, according to PRC Chair Teresita Manzala.

This announcement was made on Sunday by the Department of Labor and Employment following a report from Manzala that the decision would also spare the government from “unnecessary” expenses.

In an official communication to Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz, Manzala withdrew the PRC’s request for the usual inspirational and congratulatory message, which would have been published in a souvenir program for the oath-taking of nurses who passed the July 2011 licensure exam.

The Board of Nursing, a regulatory body for nursing professionals under the PRC, cited the current socio-economic conditions endured by many families of newly registered nurses.

At least 37,513 examinees made the cut out of the 78,135 who took the exam in early July. The names of the board passers can still be accessed through the website, www.prc.gov.ph.

Doing away with the traditional mass oath-taking ceremonies was also in response to the Aquino administration’s call for prudent budget management, said Manzala.

Baldoz in a statement on Sunday hailed the board’s decision, saying that “it sets a fine example to other government agencies to be practical in areas where effective and efficient fund management are necessary.”