'Bogus nurses' on the increase
2005-04-13 18:40
Johannesburg - The number of bogus nurses working in South Africa had significantly increased, warned a private credentials-verification firm on Wednesday.
Chief executive of Kroll MIE Ina van der Merwe said there was also an increase in number of "colleges" claiming to train nurses.
Van der Merwe said: "We come across on a daily basis the most beautifully designed diplomas and degree certificates that are utterly and totally bogus."
Her warning came just days after the Health Professions Council of SA (HPCSA) launched a probe into the qualifications of more than 100 000 doctors.
It also follows the SA Nursing Council's (Sanc) caution to prospective nurses to be aware of unregistered training institutions offering "unrecognised training in home-based care and health-care work".
Pre-employment screening
Van der Merwe said the medical profession, as a whole, had been a target of fraudsters, but nursing appeared to be "the flavour of the month" when it came to fake qualifications.
She said: "The only way for a potential employer to be certain is to do a thorough pre-employment screening through an accredited pre-employment screening company."
The Sanc had urged students to check the credentials of institutions with the council before enrolling.
Sanc chief executive and registrar Hasina Subedar said it would not recognise qualifications or certificates of students trained at illegal institutions
The HPCSA recently dismissed the co-ordinator of its committee for foreign-qualified practitioners for fraudulently registering 11 doctors who were allowed to practice in state hospitals, even although they had failed evaluation tests on entering the country.
- SAPA