65,000 names submitted to parliament to oppose community volunteer nurse program

The Nurses Association of Thailand and its network of nurses submitted a list of 65,000 names to parliament today, opposing the government’s community volunteer nurse program aimed at training volunteer nurses in 240-hour short courses and assigning them to look after vulnerable patients.

The association president, Professor Siriorn Sindhu, said today that the move of the association and its network is not intended to protect the nursing profession, but to make the government realise the importance of public safety, because the vulnerable patients to be taken care of by the volunteer nurses are a high-risk group who may suffer complications and, therefore, should be looked after by professionals or by people with knowledge and skills.

“We are not against the people who will support a community, but we think that their role must be clearly defined for public safety,” said Professor Siriorn.

She said the association is concerned that volunteer nurses who receive only 240 hours of training would be assigned to take care of bed-ridden patients, elderly people, patients suffering from diabetes, hypertension, are pregnant or post-delivery women, children or patients suffering from psychiatric or drug addiction problems.

These patients should receive proper health care, she said, adding that the care is not confined to routine help, but the care-taker should be able to assess the condition of the patient and distinguish dangerous signs and be able to decide whether the patient should be sent to a hospital for treatment.

Nursing is a profession and nurses must knowledgeable and have the skills according to the standard and have a license, not anybody who has passed a short training course, said Professor Siriorn.

Regarding a proposal to change the name of community volunteer nurses, she said that a name change is not the solution. The important issue is what the role of these volunteers actually is and whether their role is defined by law.

The association has submitted a list of demands to the government, which includes a review of the community volunteer nurse program and a solution to the shortage of nurses, noting that there are 7,000 trained nurses who are yet to be fully employed by the state.