Error in document could be blamed
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - HEALTH Minister Akilah Byron-Nisbett has cleared the air on an issue that raised its head in the public’s domain surrounding the Ministry of Health and nurses in St. Kitts and Nevis.
At the center of the issue is when do nurses have to reregister their licences to operate in the Federation.
According to complaints from nurses, they are to do so once every two years, but are being asked to do so annually.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes News, the Minister of Health said that is not the case and highlighted that the latter is actually what is provided for in the Nurses and Midwives Registration Act.
Citing the Act, the Minister said that it speaks to “annual registration” of nurses.
“A nurse who desires her name to be retained in the register for any year subsequent to the first year in which it was initially included on the register shall on or before the 31st December of that year, forward to the Registrar notification in Form Five, Schedule 2 of his or her intention to remain on the register,.” the Minister noted
But a principle agreement that the Nurses and Midwives Registration Act would be updated to include changes, including the wording "bi-annual" registration, had not yet been made and that is from where the confusion might have originated.
Nurse Jamilla Francis, President of the Nurses Association, took to the airwaves to raise the complaint and voiced her displeasure at the way the situation has turned out, including an allegation that the Minister blocked all forms of communications with her.
According to Minister Byron-Nisbett, prior to taking office, discussions were already in play to have the Act updated, but that fell through for a number of reasons. She explained that back in 2018, the Nurses Association wrote to the previous Ministers asking for registration to be done once every two years.
With the update not being completed and the Minister having sent correspondence to the stakeholders, she has asked for feedback so that a comprehensive overhaul of the Act could be done to the benefit of the nurses and all involved, with a view to having the changes be made during the course of this year.
One such feedback is seeking the assistance of the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and reviewing its current Act to determine the best way forward.
“From what I understand, there were some movements to make changes to the Act, but that did not quite come to fruition. I am not sure how or what happened. Apparently, there is Schedule Six which speaks to fees, where it tells you how much to pay in order to reregister. And where it said renewal, in brackets actually says bi-annual instead of biennial,” disclosed Minister Byron-Nisbett.
Bi-annual speaks twice per year or every six months, while biennial is every two years.
“So, there are some discrepancies within the Act that can be raised. This was already discussed and explained to the now President of the Nurses Association, that at the end of the day Section 11 is what the registrar has to comply with,” she added.
This morning (Mar. 18), Nurse Francis voiced her displeasure that the matter is still not resolved and the fact that the Minister has given a go ahead for the Nurses Council to be properly constituted, and those below her have not followed through.
Nurses Francis contends that the update measures were presented at the CARICOM level and should have already come into effect. But the absence of the updated regulations/Act has prevented many of those changes presented by CARICOM from being institued in the Federation.
Asked to address the allegation of her blocking all forms of communication, the Minister denied that claim.
