Govt taps med students to address health worker shortage

The Philippine government is implementing measures to address a potential shortage of medical workers amidst rising COVID-19 infections among health professionals.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque assured that strict safety protocols are being enforced to protect health workers.

As a measure to augment the healthcare workforce, the government has approved the limited practice of medicine students who have not yet obtained their licenses.

Fourth-year medicine students are being prepared to offer their services if necessary.

The Inter-agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has guidelines for recruiting medical graduates as a last resort during the state of public health emergency.

The DOH has formulated interim guidelines, and under The Medical Act, medical graduates can be given special authorization to serve during epidemics.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has approved the hiring of an additional 857 contract-of-service workers for the DOH.

These new hires will be deployed to key hospitals including the Lung Center of the Philippines, Philippine General Hospital, and Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Medical Center.

The additional personnel will include various roles such as Medical Officers, Nurses, Radiologic Technologists, Respiratory Therapists, and Ward Assistants.

The total monthly cost for these additional workers is approximately P35.823 million.