PRC chair says no glaring leakage in nursing exam

Manila Bulletin
By KATHLEEN ANNE H. JOHNSON

The controversy hounding the nursing board exams continues with Philippine Regulation Commission (PRC) chairperson Leonor T. Rosero declaring that there was "no glaring leakage" in the June 11 nursing licensure examination.
In a press forum at the Ambassador Hotel in Manila yesterday, Rosero said that while there were certain questions from Tests III and V that leaked, the PRC removed 25 items from Test III and reduced the rate in Test V from 100 percent to 10 percent which could have been covered by the "leakage" so that those who cheated would not benefit from it.
She said that the PRC did not actually void Test V in question, but only toned down some scores and eliminated some questions.
The claim was supported by Board of Nursing chairperson Eufemia Octaviano who also gave the same view as Rosero's on the leakage issue at the forum.
However, members of the Faculty Association of University of Santo Tomas College of Nursing said that in a resolution dated July 12, 2006, the PRC invalidated and excluded the 25 questions which were allegedly leaked from the test questions prepared by Virginia Mandeja, in Test III or the Nursing Practice III from the correction and computation of the scores of the examinees and nullified the results of the examination in Test V or The Nursing Practice V.
The group said the move brought concern to the UST College of Nursing community as it appealed to the PRC to suspend the scheduled oath-taking of successful examinees, while results of a full-scale and independent investigation are pending.
"We are fully aware that the PRC invalidated the 25 questions in Test III as well as all questions in Test V . The said tests measure the knowledge and competence of nursing graduates in two key subject-areas of the nursing curriculum: Medical Surgical Nursing (Test III) and Psychiatric Nursing (Test V). These subjects are major areas of competence of the profession, and deprived students who are good in those subjects," said Prof. Rene M. Tadle, president of the Faculty Association of UST College of Nursing.
Tadle said the move by the PRC also brought confusion on the basis of computation of grades of the examinees.
"We must insure that the medical profession is not infiltrated by incompetents to whom patients may unwarily entrust their lives and health," he said.
"Would the government allow the risking of patients’ life and limb under the care of nurses with doubtful competence?"