Philippine Nurses Association of United Kingdom (PNA-UK)

NEWS

A ONE KIND OF A MEETING (20 November 2004)

November 20th, 2004 will go down in history as the day Filipino Nurses in the UK have formally bonded and sealed the foundation of the Philippine Nurses Association of UK.

Under the kind-hearted offering of Ambassador Edgardo Espiritu, PNA-UK members, friends and guests gathered together at the ambassador’s minimalist study and informally discussed the association’s past, present and future status.

Inside the elegant but distinctively relaxed atmosphere of his sitting room, Ambassador Espiritu welcomed each member to this meeting. In his welcome address, he expressed great pleasure of being able to be a part of this historical moment. With the growing number of Filipino nurses in the UK, the Ambassador is pleased to have PNA-UK formed as the premier organization of Filipino Nurses here in the UK. With the support of the national head office as an Accredited Professional Organization, Ambassador Espiritu pledged his support to PNA-UK in the attainment of the association’s vision, mission and goals. He said that nothing can be more noble and professional than being able “to promote professional growth towards the attainment of the highest standards of (Filipino) nursing” of which is the association’s vision. He expressed profound gladness at the association’s existence and encouraged the members to keep the Filipino nurse at the forefront of professional nursing. He again generously offered the Embassy premised as a second home to PNA-UK and would always welcome the association back.

During the assembly, members and friends interacted with cautious passion and interest. In between, discussions about the history and founding, purpose and objectives, vision, mission and goals, objectives, national and local structures, progress report, ratification of the constitution and website tour were tackled.

Unanimously, the members present at the meeting jointly and mutually agreed to the New Constitution and By-Laws of the association. After having reviewed, amended, and ratified the new constitution and by-laws, the members have cooperatively agreed to sanction and promulgate the new Constitution of the PNA-UK. To signify their collective agreement of the new document, a constitutional signing was done post-meeting.

The final hour of the meeting was spent on the official website launching of the association’s official website at www.pna-uk.org. Friends and members were given a brief tour of the website and its various sections. Designed and maintained by NameDrop Designs (www.namedropdesigns.com), the website contains quick links to external Philippine and UK government websites of which might be important to the Filipino nurse. Another section contains a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page for those wanting to know more about PNA-UK. A quick link to other PNA chapters worldwide and a contact page is also included. The most information rich aspect of the website is the news page where past and present news and press release about Filipino nurses in the UK are archived. Most of the news contained in the news page is collated from various sources in the internet. Latest activities and upcoming projects, meetings and activities of the association are also posted on this page. For the non-member wishing to be a part of the association, a member benefits page and a downloadable membership form are also available in the “become a member” link.

The meeting was capped by a generous raffle made possible by PHISH Remittance and ABS-CBN TFC. Representatives from both establishments provided the raffle prizes that made everybody happy. Chef Felix Bayker who joined the meeting to provide support for the association also provided for the meryenda. In this note, PNA-UK is currently working with Labor Attaché Vic Ablan to help Chef Felix Bayker and the other Filipino chefs in the UK to likewise form their own association. Other guests who showed support for the PNA-UK were Gary Mills of Tagalog Balikbayan Services, Jun Recio of SSS, Ed Maranan (Embassy Information Officer), Malou Coronado (PA to the Ambassador), Gen Ashley of NameDrop Designs, Herman Pabunan (Labor Assistant), and other embassy staff and friends from Ireland.

The meeting came to a close with Labor Attaché Vic Ablan giving the closing remarks. In his inspirational statement, Labatt Vic encouraged the members to remain steadfast and strong whilst the association is starting to grow and slowly achieve its vision, mission, objectives and goals. His warmest congratulations went out to each member on this occasion. Likewise, he offered his continuous support and assistance to PNA-UK and its members just like his continuous presence during the meeting.

As agreed by the members, the next meeting will be on February 23 (Wednesday), 2005. The venue is to be confirmed and announced at a later date. Again, all are encouraged to attend.

WWW.PNA-UK.ORG goes live (01 Sept 2004)

Nurses in the UK and anywhere in the world are now able to access information about the Philippine Nurses Association of the UK and other related information through the use of the Internet.

The PNA-UK website is now live and can be accessed by its web address of WWW.PNA-UK.ORG where various information and links can be found. The website aims to inform and connect nurses anywhere through the use of Information Technology. It also serves to bring members and non-members up-to-date with the latest news and current affairs about PNA. Membership forms are conveniently available in the website for nurses in the UK who would like to become a member. Detailed instructions are also provided for interested members.

WWW.PNA-UK.ORG will officially be launched on the 20th of November 2004 at the Philippine Embassy in London during the Inaugural Members Meeting. The website was designed and is maintained by www.namedropdesigns.com.

Help for Filipino Nurses ( 05 August 2004 )

Feel good factor ( 03 June 2004 )

Perilous adventure for Filipino nurses ( 06 March 2004 )

22 Filipino nurses to stay in Cumbria ( 06 March 2004 )

NMC warns Filipino nurses signing up to work in the UK ( 05 March 2004 )

Briton 'Fleeced Filipino Nurses' ( 19 October 2003 )

Confusing policies worsen outflow of nurses ( 23 April 2003 )

Quality of nursing education deteriorating ( 22 April 2003 )

Philippines suffers from hemorrhage of nurses ( 21 April 2003 )

Filipino nurses start work ( 20 September 2002 )

Filipino nurses arrive in South East ( 18 June 2002 )

Exposed: Nurses Lured To Slave Labour ( 29 March 2002 )