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400 nurses to be promoted to newly created leadership role

SINGAPORE — Starting this month, around 400 nurses will be promoted to the new role of Assistant Nurse Clinician, which comes with more responsibility for leading fellow nurses, as well as a rise in salary.

Norlaila Bte Kamarudin (right) an Assistant Nurse Clinician at the National Skin Centre, received the Nurses' Merit Award 2015 at the Nurses' Merit Award Presentation held at Orchard Hotel on 24 Jul 2015. With her is the Office of the Director of Medical Services' Chief Nursing Officer Tan Soh Chin. Photo: Ooi Boon Keong

Norlaila Bte Kamarudin (right) an Assistant Nurse Clinician at the National Skin Centre, received the Nurses' Merit Award 2015 at the Nurses' Merit Award Presentation held at Orchard Hotel on 24 Jul 2015. With her is the Office of the Director of Medical Services' Chief Nursing Officer Tan Soh Chin. Photo: Ooi Boon Keong

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SINGAPORE — Starting this month, around 400 nurses will be promoted to the newly created role of assistant nurse clinician, which comes with more responsibility for leading fellow nurses, as well as a rise in salary.

About 17 per cent of senior staff nurses (Grade 1) in the public sector will advance to the role, Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State (Health), announced today (July 24).

“We want to help our nurses build fulfilling lifelong careers,” she said at the annual Nurses’ Merit Awards, where 100 nurses were honoured for their dedication to the profession.

Ms Norlaila Kamarudin, 41, who has been a nurse for 25 years and is among those who will advance to assistant nurse clinician, said the promotion would help senior nurses pick up leadership skills for future promotions.

Another nurse, Ms Satran Kaur, 60, said the new role combines her two passions of caring for the sick and guiding younger nurses.

The role was one of 15 recommendations approved by the National Nursing Taskforce last August to develop the profession in the areas of career development, autonomy, recognition and education, as well as attract more nurses. 

Other initiatives included a second round of monthly salary increases of 3 to 10 per cent, which will take place in October, and the training of more advanced practice nurses (APN) in the public sector as well as Intermediate and Long-Term Care institutions. 

“With an ageing population, the need for healthcare provision will continue to grow, especially in the new growth areas of community and home care,” said Dr Khor.

The Ministry of Health (MOH) is meeting this need by growing the pool of community-based APNs, who will conduct home visits to patients with sub-acute conditions so as to catch worsening cases early and refer them to the relevant home medical team or other healthcare providers. 

The MOH has also revised the eligibility criteria for the Certificate in Bridging Studies for enrolled nurses, so that those who did not make the previous 2.8 grade point average requirement, but who have at least three years of experience and an employer’s testimonial, can apply for the part-time courses.

This will allow more enrolled nurses to become registered nurses, with a four-fold increase in intake from 45 to 180 this academic year. 

“The role of nurses will not diminish, but only grow in importance in the future. We are making steady efforts to enhance nursing as a profession, and we will continue to invest in our nurses,” said Dr Khor. 

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