THE PROFESSIONAL  Regulation Commission agreed with House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco that underboard nursing graduates can be tapped as complementary manpower amid the shortage of health workers in the country.

Velasco said these nursing graduates can work under the supervision of a registered nurse or doctor through a special arrangement with the PRC.

PRC Chairman Teofilo Pilando Jr., in his letter to Velasco, confirmed that the services of nursing graduates can be availed of during public health emergencies.

He cited Commission on Higher Education Memorandum Order No. 14, series of 2009, which provides that unlicensed nursing graduates may be given responsibilities similar to that of nursing aides in the hospital setting.

“Should they be employed as nurse attendants or aides, they should be under the supervision of a registered nurse of the facility,” Pilando said.

Velasco thanked Pilando for his response.

“We will need all the resources we can get to help fight the pandemic,” the Speaker said.