MANILA — The Commission of Higher Education (CHED) said it has started taking steps to address the shortage of nurses in the country brought about by migration.

CHED Chairperson Prospero De Vera said the agency is already carrying out various interventions to prevent the shortage of nurses, such as "retooling board non-passers, adopting nursing curriculum with exit credentials, redirecting non-practicing nurses and conducting exchange programs with other countries."

“Under the nursing curriculum with exit credentials, students could have several options: exit at the end of Level I or II, obtain the certificate or diploma in Nursing, or choose to continue and finish the four-year nursing program to become a registered nurse,” De Vera reported to the Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) Health Sector group.

De Vera also said the agency is working on a flexible short-term masteral program to address the lack of instructors in nursing and medical schools.

President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. has directed CHED to address the shortage of nurses in the country, which has been affecting the delivery of effective healthcare.

The Department of Health (DOH), for its part, said it is also assessing the status of proposed legislation on the Magna Carta for Public Health Care Workers and Philippine Nursing Act, while also studying the standardization of salaries of nurses, doctors and healthcare workers.

It will also monitor new technologies that can be used in remote areas.

According to the ABS-CBN Investigative and Research Group, nurses have continued to migrate to other countries even during the height of the pandemic.

Almost 6,000 nurses were deployed in 2020, despite the 5,000 cap set by the government. It was at the time when there were no new nurses due to the suspension of board exams.

The DOH earlier said the country is in need of at least 350,000 nurses.

• Pilipinas kailangan ng 350,000 nurses: DOH