The lure of big bucks is attracting even those qualified in other fields to join the nursing industry, writes SUZANNA PILLAY.

Young nurses are supervised when giving patients medication.

A nurse helps a patient with lunch.

Classroom training for future nurses at the college.

NURSING may not be the easiest of professions to pursue, but the guarantee of a job with the possibility of securing a well-paid job overseas is proving to be a very attractive lure to young Malaysian women today.

“Nursing is in huge demand. All over the world, people want qualified nurses. No matter how many we train at our college, it is not enough,” said Ng Kok Toh, assistant director of Nursing II (Education), Tun Tan Cheng Lock College of Nursing in Petaling Jaya, Selangor. The college is the country’s first private nursing college and has been training nurses since 1961.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends a nurse-to-patient ratio of 1:200 while the Malaysian nurse-ratio is 1:645, as reported in the Nursing and Midwifery Board Malaysia’s website. At least 130,000 nurses need to be trained by 2020 to meet WHO’s nurse-to-patient ratio.

“The nursing profession has received a lot of publicity and prospective candidates believe their future would be secured because there is a job waiting for them. Although we warn them that it is a demanding job which involves shift work, they don’t mind,” she added.
The industry is so attractive that some candidates with degrees in biotechnology and microbiology are signing up for nursing courses.

“We also receive lots of applications from students with diplomas in technology and we even had a student who had completed a foundation course in engineering who joined us,” Ng said.

Any difficulty of them adapting to a course which is so different in requirements?

“Somehow they manage. They say they want to do something to help people and nursing requires that.”

As a career option, Ng said nursing today is more dynamic and moving forward in tandem with other professions. There are degree, Master’s, PhD and other specialisation programmes in nursing.

Although attracting candidates to nursing courses is not an obstacle, retaining their services once they are qualified is a challenge.

“We are training fresh candidates and if they are bonded to a hospital, they remain. A typical nursing programme involves three years of study followed by five years of work experience if bonded by a hospital, which can seem a very long time to a young person to be with an organisation.

“It is only natural for them to want to move on to the next higher-paying hospital or opt for other lucrative options like going to Saudi Arabia, Australia or the United States, where they can apply for their green card. The thing is they don’t come back so there’s a shortage of nurses in Malaysia.”

It is not uncommon in Malaysian hospitals to see a wide difference in the ages of nurses with a few older nurses in their 50s and 60s, then those in the 20s and 30s. There are few nurses in between these two age groups. Unlike in the past, it is common to see a staff nurse in her 20s.

“These days there are very young staff nurses because older ones don’t stay. After five years, they will leave for greener pastures. We don’t have enough experienced nurses to show the ropes to the younger ones.”

Producing and sustaining the quality of nurses in Malaysia is an important issue that has to be tackled, Ng said.

“It is not good for the future of the profession to merely accept anyone who applies for a nursing programme. If you do not pick girls with high academic performance, it would compromise the nursing industry.”

Another worry is that while nurses undergo some practical training at the various training colleges, there isn’t enough clinical exposure.

“There are too many training colleges with too few hospitals, so clinical exposure is insufficient.”

Also, the move of young nurses from student to staff is quite a jump and some are unable to cope with the stress of the job. This is particularly so when it involves patients with multiple disorders as you would have different doctors treating the patient and this can be difficult for a young nurse to keep track of. Some are also intimidated by the much older doctors/consultants.

“Young nurses are in awe of the doctors while some doctors are impatient with these young nurses who are raw. They should be given allowance to grow. Older, experienced nurses are able to hold their own with doctors and discuss patients needs with them because of the experience they have acquired through their long years of service as nurses.”

But with more nurses seeking higher education and improving their skills, nature of nursing would be different. In places like Singapore, Australia and America, their requirements for entry into the profession is higher, equivalent to professional degree programmes.

This is something Ng hopes the nursing profession here would emulate.

NOTE: Yesterday was International Nurses Day.

Nurses speak out

LOVE it or hate it? Here’s what nurses have to say about their job and the improvements they would like to see in the nursing field.

Sister Lim Bee Sung, 38

Likes: Enjoys caring for the patients and sharing information with them which patients appreciate.

Dislikes: Lack of commitment in some young nurses. The older generation of nurses were serious and viewed the job as their second life. The young nurses these days are more keen on minting money and want to go overseas to work. The public also don’t understand nor appreciate the quality of care given by nurses. Some nurses won’t go the extra mile because it is not appreciated. Public expectations and demands are high but nurses have limitations too.

Improvements: Stimulate interest in nursing through the provision of fellowships and training opportunities for nurses and the development of career opportunities. Provide more courses for nurses in private hospitals for orthopedic, perioperative nursing, renal care and intensive care.

Staff Nurse Narindar Kaur, 27

Likes: Handling different cases as you learn each time. It is also nice to be appreciated by doctors when you suggest ways of improving care for the patients. Some doctors might not say it but they would incorporate your suggestion and that’s rewarding.

Dislikes: The job presents a lot of challenges in terms of dealing effectively with people. Some relatives of patients can be difficult and sometimes it is difficult to communicate with doctors. You need to be able to take lots of instruction and need to be patient.

Improvements: Selecting the right people for the job is important. They must have the right attitude so that they can put in the expected effort required by the job. Patients can tell the difference between a good nurse and a bad one.

Staff Nurse Chan Bing Mun, 23

Likes: Enjoys caring for the patients and watching them recover and get discharged from the hospital. I also like talking to the family members and advising them on health issues pertaining to the patient.

Dislikes: Coping with the long hours and shift work.

Improvements: More practical training for nurses.