Nursing Council staff crunch hits timely issuance of certificates

Thiruvananthapuram: Severe shortage of employees at the Kerala Nursing and Midwives Council has delayed the issuance of various certificates. Those hard hit are nurses who have secured jobs abroad and need to submit documents within the deadline.

The post of the registrar too is vacant for the last six months despite repeated assurances from the office of the health minister that appointment would be held soon.

It is alleged that the appointment of the registrar is purposefully delayed in order to facilitate corruption via the deputy registrar’s office.

Among the 19 employees at the Council, only the deputy registrar and a clerk are permanently employed. The remaining17 are temporary employees.

Why the workload is high
An IMG team that had studied about the staff pattern at the Council, in 2018, had recommended that at least 42 permanent employees are required.

Around 3.60 lakh nurses are registered with the Council. They are required to renew their registration every five year.

Every year, more than 9,600 candidates complete BSc Nursing and BSc General Nursing courses in the state. Besides, around 8,000 nurses complete their courses in colleges outside the state. Those who have completed courses can be employed only after registering at the Council.

The Council manages the 131 nursing colleges in the government and the private sector in the state.