About 30 nephrology (dialysis) nurses rallied in front of the Central Administrative Court today, to demand the revocation of a Ministry of Public Health announcement, requiring them to undertake a new training course, at institutes endorsed by Thailand Nursing and Midwifery Council, on the operation of haemodialysis machines.
Phirawan Srimai, a representative of the protesting nurses, said that they all have 10-30 years of experience in the use of dialysis machines and are certified by the Nephrology Society of Thailand.
The announcement, which applies to all nephrology nurses, will render them unable to do their job, because the Nursing and Midwifery Council does not recognise certificates issued by the Nephrology Society of Thailand, said Phirawan, adding that this will affect as many as about 1,000 nurses and patients who require haemodialysis daily.
There are currently about 70,000 patients with kidney failure requiring regular dialysis, but only about 500 new nephrology nurses qualify each year, according to Phirawan.
Moreover, she pointed out that the new training course, including the Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) course, costs about 40,000 baht for each nurse and only 250 nurses can be accepted per course.
