Oh goody! More nurses to the US!

UST takes two top slots in medical board
• 55 percent of examinees pass

(UPDATE) MEDICAL graduates from the University of Santo Tomas (UST) gave the country’s oldest university a one-two finish in the Physician Licensure Examination given early this week, the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) announced Thursday evening.

Patrick Leonardo Go Co achieved a rating of 86.83 to place first, followed by Bernadine Co Chua, who got 85.00 percent.

Erwyn Carpela Novilla of the Cebu Institute of Medicine (CIM) placed third with a rating of 84.67 percent.

Rounding off the top five are Beodaldy Paterno Bombeo of the Cebu Doctors College of Medicine in fourth, with 84.58 percent; and tying for fifth, Pamela Isa Evangelista Basilio of De La Salle University(DLSU)-Dasmariñas, and Leonard Cheung Lim of the University of the Philippines (UP)-Manila, both with 84.50 percent. (For the rest of the exam nopnotchers, click blog title. Originally published on the INQ7 web site, Aug. 17, 2006.)

SERIOUSLY, congratulations to all the new doctors!

However, it is a reality that a lot of physicians, especially those working in government hospitals around the country, have been leaving us to work as nurses in the US, UK, and the Middle East. It's sad, but you should know how difficult it is to make a living as a government doctor or rural physician. Still, we do have an impending health care crisis on our hands. No good doctors in the barrios and no more competent nurses even in our premier hospitals. Who's gonna take care of the sick when all these professionals leave?