What caused the Nursing Associations in Kerala to oppose the Union Govt’s Draft Nursing Bill-2020?

The draft National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill-2020 has been the talk of the town for the medicos around the country. Though the Union Ministry of Health and Family Affairs has proposed the bill to improvise the current circumstances of the nursing fraternity, a majority section believes that it does more harm than good. Once the bill is passed, the National Commission will replace the Indian Nursing Council, and many Nursing Associations in Kerala are not pretty much in favor of the change.

The state, which accounts for 60% of nurses in the country, finds the new Commission to supposedly create a problematic environment for the nursing/midwifery education and governance. The Union Ministry had set the 6th of December as the last day to receive comments upon the bill, and this is what a large portion of nursing organizations in Kerala are saying.

The Membership Rules:

As reported by the Kerala Government Nurses Association’s general secretary, Mr. T. Subramanian, the primary issue with the membership in the ‘national commission’ is the selection of its members. The ‘election process’ for choosing the council members that had continued for over 70 years since the inception of the INC (Indian Nursing Council) will be terminated if the National Commission Bill is passed. And the new committee members will be appointed by the Union Government itself.

Subramanian further adds that the National Commission will have its members chosen from six zones, where each zone would be comprised of four-five states. Only two members shall be selected from each zone, i.e., from a group of four to five states, only two representatives will be appointed. With this scenario, an associate from Kerala will have to wait for very long to avail his/her turn.

In addition to this, the Commission has listed only three institutes from the whole of South India, including one in Kerala. And it is from these three institutes that the Commission shall choose its members. This will reduce the chance of a majority of deserving candidates to show up in the council.

Replaces the State Councils with State Commissions and No Mention About Salaries:

The changes affecting at the national level are also disturbing the state-level councils. Not only will the state council be replaced by the state commission, but the members will again be appointed by the Union Government. The Kerala Nursing Council’s President, Usha Devi, points out that such a selection process by the Union Ministry will have a debilitating impact on the federal system. She also adds that of the 22 lakh nurses in India, 12 lakh come from Kerala, and there is no clear idea on how the bill would impact them and their professions.

Moreover, there is no clear mention of how the salaries and working hours will be changed as per the new bill. Nurses’ salaries have always been in the protest, and yet there was nothing discussed them.

Unclear Details on Entrance/Exit Exams for Nursing:

Entrance exams for nursing coaching were removed by the Indian Nursing Council over ten years ago. The primary purpose of doing so was to support poor competitors who weren’t able to afford coaching classes for entrances. In its replacement, the marks from their 12th scorecard would be considered. The new National Commission proposes to start the entrances again, which could be a clear violation against poor students, both Subramanian and Usha Devi mention in their statements.

Also, there are not many details explained about the Exit exam, which students are supposed to write after completion of their courses before they are appointed to work as nurses. The National Commission has not stated who shall conduct the exams and how many times the students will be permitted to write.

In addition to this, Subramanian also points out that the responsibility of inspecting and rating nursing institutes and hospitals was peacefully carried out by the Kerala Nursing Council until now. But with the Commission in place, the authority will be passed on to designated agencies which, he suspects would be corrupting.

However, United Nurses Association is Supportive of the Bill:

The President of UNA, Shoby Joseph, explains that it was the need of the hour to establish a commission, as the council had certain rules that were complicated. Nurses who moved from one state to another had to go through a tedious process to register themselves in the new state while canceling the previous States’ registration. The UNA believes that the establishment of the National Commission could bring up a solution to the issue.

However, they too requested to pour some clarity on salaries, job description, working hours, and other details which haven’t been stated in the present bill.

On the whole, the bill has a lot to come up with in comparison to the present day’s INC. Several renowned personalities in the field of medicine have posted their comments upon the bill; the results and decisions are yet to be made. The medicos’ world is all in wait for what changes are going to be made.