Labor chief backs 'voluntary' nursing exam retake

Saying it will bring closure to last year's nursing exam scandal, labor secretary Labor secretary Arturo Brion pushed for a voluntary retake of the board exams as required by a US agency. Brion said Saturday he will recommend to Malacañang the voluntary partial retake of the exam. "I'll recommend that those who want to take some parts of the exam take it, just to go to the US. This will also bring closure to the June 2006 nursing exam scandal. By allowing those who want to take the exam to take the exam, we will show the world we are finally closing the book on the scandal," he said in Filipino in a radio interview. He said he will meet with Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) chairwoman Leonor Rosero on the matter on Monday. He said Rosero had told him she will meet with the Philippine Nurses Association. The Philadelphia-based Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS International) had announced Thursday that Filipino nursing graduates who passed the leakage-marred June 2006 nursing licensure examination are not eligible for a VisaScreen Certificate. VisaScreen Certificate is a requirement to apply for a nursing or related job in the US. CGFNS is an internationally recognized authority on credentials evaluation and verification pertaining to the education, registration and licensure of nurses and healthcare professionals worldwide. All 17,323 passers in the June 2006 nursing licensure exam had been sworn in as licensed nurses on the basis of a decision by the Court of Appeals in October last year. Brion said his recommendation will not likely clash with the Supreme Court's decision Friday, junking an appeal by nursing teachers seeking a retake. “The SC decision was about retaking the exam for giving nurses licenses. The CGFNS requirement is for the visa screen certificate, for them to enter the US. The purposes are different," he said in Filipino. On the other hand, he said the US agency's requirement was without prejudice to the exam results, and was "internal" to the US government. “What it said is that it is not touching on the results of the exam. This is about their prerogative to give visas. This is a standard they are requiring for purposes of going to the US," he said in Filipino. When asked about the possibility of "appealing" the CGFNS decision, Brion said an appeal is unlikely, though a government-to-government talk is possible. “Perhaps we can talk government-to-government, but not appeal. This is something internal to the US, this is about entering their territory. We can talk to them but not appeal," he said in Filipino. Earlier, Rosero said in a radio interview that only a few will be affected by the move. For the moment, she said the Philippine government will abide by the decision of the Court of Appeals that only 1,687 examinees will have to retake Tests 3 and 5 of the exam. She added only those not yet applying for CGFNS will be affected by the edict as there have been many passers who already took the CGFNS and passed. Besides, she said the CGFNS edict applies only to the US and not other countries accepting Filipino nurses. "We will give an announcement as soon as we arrive at a decision," she said in Filipino. On the other hand, Rosero said the CGFNS requirement may apply to only those applying for immigrant visas. She said those seeking work visas are not affected by the CGFNS requirement. Rosero said that of the 1,687 whom the CA said will have to retake Tests 3 and 5, "only" 1,200 have actually retaken the exam and 90 percent of them had passed. "Only a few need to retake Tests 3 and 5, only about 400," she said.-GMANews.TV