Nurses, whether public or private, deserve just pay

We welcome the Supreme Court’s ruling that upholds a provision of Republic Act No. 9173, or the Philippine Nursing Act of 2002, stating that government nurses should receive compensation pegged at Salary Grade 15, not Salary Grade 11 as specified in Executive Order No. 811 issued by then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

But our fight for just compensation doesn’t end here. We urge Congress to annually appropriate funds for this, for the provision to be effectively implemented. We also reecho our call for higher compensation for our fellow nurses in private institutions. They deserve compensation that should at least be equal to the minimum set by the government for public health nurses.

The government will hear more of nurses’ voices as we gear for 2020, which is the International Year of the Nurse and Midwife. It is high time our government saw the value of nurses in delivering quality health care services and improving the overall quality of life of the Filipino people. The value of nurses should rise above the level of the hospital bed.

Rather than liabilities, nurses should be seen as valuable assets of the health care delivery system, and be given enough compensation for the essential work that they do.

REINER LORENZO J. TAMAYO, RN
Philippine General Hospital
[email protected]