Rigid screening, validation await Batch 2006 nursing graduates

They will not be subjected to outright rejection, but Batch 2006 nursing school graduates and board passers will have to go through rigid screening before they can infiltrate Makati City’s leading hospital.

Observers said the controversial leakage in the June 2006 nursing board examinations would definitely affect their chances of getting employed in top hospitals.

As far as the Makati Medical Center (MMC) is concerned, Batch 2006 will have to go through screening and more validation.

"We will not say ‘no’ pero dadaan sila sa butas ng karayom. Mahihirapang pumasok," MMC nursing services director Malou Furio told The Star."We will treat each applicant on a case-to-case basis pero mas magiging mahirap ang grilling sa application process."

Furio said hospital officials have talked about the MMC’s stand in so far as accepting new nurses from Batch 2006.

"Actually, the initial action was to not accept, but we decided to do otherwise," she said, noting that the MMC and its nursing school supports a possible re-take.

At present, the MMC has some 600 nurses employed and takes in 30 to 40 nurses every month, all of whom sign two-year contracts.

Furio said the hospital-owned Remedies Trinidad Romualdez Memorial School (RTRMS) had 140 students who all passed the board exams with flying colors last June.

"We have a high-performing school and we are ranked No. 8 among nursing schools. We have a very small student population and our students are properly guided. They know they are good," she said while noting that MMC’s nursing graduates are not afraid of going through the test again.

In case a retake fails to push through, Furio said graduates of other schools will find a difficult time finding employment at their hospital.

"We have a very strict panel of interviewers. We will rigidly explore the clinical background of a candidate," she said.

Furio took pride in saying that MMC’s nurses are very marketable abroad, thus giving them higher chances of finding employment on other countries.