Nurse charged with rape of disabled Arizona woman who gave birth

PHOENIX - An Arizona male nurse has been charged with raping a severely disabled woman at the long-term care facility where he worked, a crime that came to light only after she gave birth, prosecutors said on Wednesday.

Nathan Sutherland, 36, was arrested by investigators who linked him to the case through DNA evidence after the woman, who is in her 20s, unexpectedly gave birth on Dec. 29 at Hacienda Healthcare Skilled Nursing Facility in Phoenix.

"From the minute we first became aware of this crime, a sexual assault, we have worked virtually non-stop every day, every night, seven days a week trying to solve and resolve this case," Police Chief Jeri Williams told a news conference.

Williams said the case, which has made international headlines, was solved through a combination of DNA and "good old fashioned police work."

Sutherland, a licensed practical nurse who began working at Hacienda Health care in 2012, was charged with one count each of sexual assault and abuse of a vulnerable adult. He was ordered held on $500,000 bail during a brief appearance in Maricopa County Superior Court.

Reuters could not reach Sutherland's defense lawyer for comment on Wednesday.

The Arizona Republic newspaper reported that attorney Dave Gregan said during the hearing that there was no direct evidence against his client, who had no criminal history, and that the defense planned to conduct its own DNA tests.

The woman, who has been disabled since very early childhood as a result of seizures, has spent most of her life in Phoenix's Hacienda Healthcare.

Though she was initially described as comatose, her parents said in a written statement that although she was disabled she could respond to sound, make facial gestures and had some ability to move her limbs, head and neck.

"The important thing is that she is a beloved daughter, albeit with significant intellectual disabilities," they said.

The parents declined to comment on Sutherland's arrest in a separate statement issued through their attorney.

Hacienda employees were not aware that woman was pregnant before she went into labor, police say, and were first alerted to the case when the baby was born. Police then sought DNA samples from all male employees.

The facility said in a written statement that Sutherland was fired as soon as administrators learned of his arrest.

"Before he started work with Hacienda, he underwent extensive background checks, including an extended criminal history search; a search of multiple government registries, including sex offender registries and Arizona Department of Economic Security and Child Protective Services registries; and checks of his personal references," it said.

The baby, a boy who is being cared for by family members, is doing well, police said. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Pinoy nurse murdered in Texas

PEARLAND, Texas - Authorities are now one step closer to finding out the motive for the suspected murder of Filipino nurse Juanario "John" Rosas, after issuing an arrest warrant for 23-year-old Damien Lucas Salinas.

Rosas was found dead inside his bedroom after concerned co-workers reported to police that he missed his scheduled shift last Sunday.

Friends of Rosas said he was killed in a violent attack. Authorities suspect that the killer could be someone he knew, and the crime may not have been random.

Friends and family said Rosas was cheerful and friendly with no known enemies. They are now seeking justice.

"I would like to congratulate the authorities as one of the suspects is now in police custody. However, it is sad to note that one Filipino nurse's American dream was abbreviated by a senseless death," said Zachary Beltran.

In the meantime, 22-year-old Courtney King believed to be the suspect’s girlfriend, was arrested and charged with felony for tampering with evidence and arson.

Reports claim King allegedly tried to eliminate the evidence by attempting to burn Rosas' home. Authorities said the suspects had fled the scene and the fire was contained when police came.

Pearland police warned that Salinas is possibly armed and dangerous. Anyone with information on Salinas’ whereabouts is asked to contact the Pearland Police Department at 291-997-4100 or Brazoria County Crime Stoppers at 979-864-2279.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Obama praises Filipina nurse in State of the Union address

MANILA, Philippines - US President Barack Obama praised a Filipina nurse, who is considered one of the heroes of the Hurricane Sandy disaster, in his State of the Union address before the joint session of Congress in Washington D.C., Tuesday evening (Wednesday morning, Manila time).

In his speech, Obama mentioned Menchu Sanchez, a nurse at New York University’s Langone Medical Center, as an example to all Americans.

"We were sent here to look out for our fellow Americans in the same way they look out for one another every single day, usually without fanfare all across the country. We should follow their example," he said,.

"We should follow the example of a New York City nurse named Menchu Sanchez. When Hurricane Sandy plunged her hospital into darkness, she wasn't thinking about how her own home was faring. Her mind was on the 20 precious newborns in her care and the rescue plan she devised that kept them all safe," the US president said.

Sanchez was seated between First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, during the State of the Union address.

When President Obama mentioned Sanchez, the First Lady was seen nudging Sanchez and smiling at her.

Sanchez was invited by Obama for her role in saving 20 at-risk infants during the Hurricane Sandy disaster that devastated large parts of New York and New Jersey last year.

She devised a plan to transport 20 at-risk infants at the Langone Medical Center to intensive care units around the city.  She organized the nurses and doctors to carefully carry the babies down eight flights of stairs with only cell phones to light the way. 

Even as her own home was flooding, Sanchez thought only of protecting the babies in her care, the White House said. 

Sanchez was born, raised, and educated in the Philippines and she immigrated to the United States in the 1980s.  

She has worked as a nurse in New York for more than 25 years, and has been at NYU since 2010. 

Sanchez currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children, both of whom are in college. - With report from Rodney Jaleco, ABS-CBN News

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Meet the Filipina nurse honored by Obama

WASHINGTON, D.C. -  Filipina nurse Menchu Sanchez will get a rare vantage view of President Obama’s State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday evening (Wednesday morning, Manila time).

Sanchez, a nurse at New York University’s Langone Medical Center, will sit at the balcony as one of the special guests of First Lady Michelle Obama.

She is being hailed as one of the heroes of the Hurricane Sandy disaster that devastated large parts of New York and New Jersey last year.

She devised a plan to transport 20 at-risk infants at the Langone Medical Center to intensive care units around the city.  She organized the nurses and doctors to carefully carry the babies down eight flights of stairs with only cell phones to light the way. 

Even as Menchu’s own home was flooding, she thought only of protecting the babies in her care, the White House said. 

Menchu was born, raised, and educated in the Philippines and she immigrated to the United States in the 1980s. 

She has worked as a nurse in New York for more than 25 years, and has been at NYU since 2010. 

Menchu currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children, both of whom are in college.

The other guests of the First Lady include Alan Aleman, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico City.

In high school, Alan watched his friends come of age – driving around town with their new licenses and earning some extra cash from their summer jobs at the mall, knowing that his status prevented him from those activities.

But when he heard about news that the Obama Administration was going to provide Deferred Action for undocumented youth like him to emerge from the shadows, he was one of the first to sign up, the White House said.

Alan is in his second year at the College of Southern Nevada.  He’s studying to become a doctor and he hopes to join the Air Force.  Alan is currently working at Hermandad Mexicana, where he is in charge of final review for DACA applications. 

Also with the First Lady are Cleopatra and Nathaniel Pendleton, whose daughter Hadiya was murdered on January 29, 2013, when she was shot and killed in Harsh Park on Chicago’s South Side.

Hadiya had participated in President Obama’s public inaugural celebration on January 21, 2013.  The honor student and band majorette at King College Prep High School has become another symbol of the victims of gun violence in the country. 

Mrs. Obama attended Hadiya’s memorial service last Saturday.

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Nurse accuses embassy official of asking for cut

MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino nurse has accused an official of the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait of trying get a a percentage from the supposed benefits that the worker would get after a case settlement.

Patrick Singson said he went to the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait to seek assistance after an Arab doctor punched him inside the operating room just this year.

“Nagkamali po ako ng hawak doon sa instruction niya then he suddenly punched me twice,” said Singson, who is now back in the Philippines.

Singson said he filed a complaint before the management of the hospital and sought additional support from the embassy but was allegedly turned down.

“Hindi daw po ako entitled because they are only giving it to the domestic helpers,” he said.

Instead, Singson was referred by Daligdig Ibrahim Tanandato, the chief of the Assistance to Nationals unit of the embassy, to another Filipino who introduced himself as a financier to help him in his case.

“You should accept 10,000 KD as a form of settlement. May porsyento na kami doon,” Singson said, quoting Tanandato and the other Pinoy.

However, Tanandato belied the allegations.

“Hindi yan totoo sir. Wala din kaming sinabing porsyento-porsyento. Ang OUMWA (Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs) ang nagsasabi kung ano ang dapat naming gawin,” Tanandato said.

He even added that he fought for the OFW.

“Nakipag-away ako sa legal officer at doon sa human resource manager dahil pinaglalaban ko siya,” he said.

But Singson said he has evidence which he will submit to the Department of Foreign Affairs to prove his allegation agains the embassy official. Report from Henry Omaga-Diaz, ABS-CBN News

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Where are the Nurses?

“It’s more safe in the Philippines.”

That should be the slogan of Department of Tourism because of the hundreds of thousands of Nurses that tourists may encounter when they visit the country. They need not worry if they have heart attack, stroke, or diabetic attack, because for sure in any unholy or unexpected places be it in a mall, a tricycle terminal, on a jeepney or in the heavenly shores of Boracay, somebody will ask them "Hey, hey, hey are you okay?"

In the data of Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) as of this year, there are around 700,000 Registered Nurses in their record excluding 27,000 Nurses who just passed the recent Board exams. Among the 700,000 licensed holders, 100,000 are estimated to be working around the world as OFW and a staggering 400,000 or more are unemployed. The remaining few are working but not in the line of nursing (like call center agents, pre school teachers, real estate agents, waiter, waiters, salesman and saleslady among others).

I tried to look back as to how this hulabaloo started. Frankly, I got confused tracing back how it all began. How in the world can we have so many nurses in the Philippines??? If I may, let us go back to the year 2000 when President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo started to promote nursing as a gateway to the US to seek for the proverbial greener pastures in the so-called “land of milk and honey”, and by that, I am not referring to Israel or the Promised Land.

The second wave of Nurse Immigrants had started. The exodus to the United States was the answer to the growing need of a comfortable life that these islands cannot offer. As a result, nursing schools sprouted in just about every corner of the streets that you can think of. For the first time, the clinical instructors were earning so much because of the influx of enrollees. Every school that wanted to earn big moolah offered BS Nursing. For a while Nursing was the milking cow of the academe. Parents who dreamed of a better life for their offspring whether female, male, gay or homosexual prioritized Nursing. Awww, never mind if their heart is not into it, we just have to be practical these days. Nursing is the key to the USA.

So every one depended on Uncle Sam’s job opportunities. However, the 2011 World Trade attack resulted in a massive, worldwide, all-out war versus terrorism. Nobody ever expected the Great America would come into recession. Thereafter, US stopped the migration of Nurses to their country.

Poor Philippines. They relied on the promise of a new hope from a foreign land. Pity the parents who sold the last livestock and mortgaged the remaining piece of land that they own. Neneng, Totoy, Becky and Butch are left unemployed, unproductive and miserable. The departments and agencies of government (like DOH, CHED, PRC as well as the schools that profited) involved in the problem are left passing the buck. The Department of Health (DOH) COULD NOT THINK of any solution except to open volunteer programs for the hospitals to employ nurses. Since Nursing is a SERVICE occupation, hospitals might as well take advantage of this SERVICE and Nurses can and should render this for FREE. Good thinking.

Ahhh, the department that is tasked to uphold and protect the rights of the health workers seems to turn a blind eye on the plight of the very workers that make the department and its programs work. There is no solution that they can think of because according to them, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) did not approve the opening of plantilla positions for nurses in government. Hence, a brilliant band-aid solution cum idea, with the coordination of the different government agencies -DOH, Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Social Welfare development (DSWD), Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), provided a silver lining to the Nursing profession and thus, RN HEALS was born. In the said program Nurses are to receive a allowance of 8,000 per month plus 2,000 stipend from the Local government Unit (LGU) of the community that they are serving, a far cry from the Salary Grade 15 mandated by the Nursing Law (RA 9173). The Nurses complied fully, setting aside the issue of salary or safety, and bore in their hearts and minds the SERVICE that they promised to the profession and the people.

Hundreds and thousands of Nurses go through the common problems of unemployment, underemployment, contractualization, underpayment of salaries and inhumane working hours. Numerous have complained and protested, but none had the guts to come out and make him or herself public. Nobody had the nerve to sign their names in the complaint letter because of FEAR and HOPELESSNESS. Fear that the same department who should protect them will turn the tables on them, and hopelessness in their predicament.

Should Nurses accept the reality that a SERVICE PROFESSION will be paid pro-bono through out one’s entire career??? Perhaps I have found the answer to this question. As DOH claimed that there is a clamor for Nurses to work in the hospitals for FREE in exchange of a CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION for the service rendered. I salute these Nurses then. They should be given the Florence Nightingale Award. I respect you more than the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) workers who faced the camera and threatened to go on strike for the benefits that they did not receive.

Volunteerism is a noble act. Trust me, I do that all the time for charities and organizations I believe in. But if a program of Volunteerism is used to benefit a department to save its funds meant for capital budget, I think DOH should have more political will to find the solutions to this long standing issue. Since there is a shortage of Nurses in the hospitals, why can’t we open positions first before opening a slot for volunteerism? I heard of an action for ‘Mandamus’ coming from friends in the legal profession. I wonder why DOH cannot file a petition before DBM if truly DOH cares for its workers?

My spirit is vexed. It seems the department that we are dealing with is apathetic to what we are appealing for. But it pains me more when I see Nurses accepting the abuses.

I’ve asked myself why am I active in this campaign? Clearly, I do not benefit from this because I could do so much more and have more fun doing other things that interests me. I will not earn here. But I have realized that I love the Philippines so much and I love the Filipinos even more. If all the Nurses are given a slot in the hospitals, following the Nurse Patient ratio (1:12) and deployed in the communities for primary health care then, maybe, just maybe, we can see a more developed country because its constituents are well and healthy.

Nurses, you have the POWER to stand for your RIGHT, to earn a living, to be given a decent salary and to have a work place conducive to professional development. We are his BOSSES. Let us demand what is RIGHTFULLY OURS. The promised “Tuwid na Daan” does not exempt anyone and I hope in the near future the DOH will exemplify in its policies, projects and programs the assurance of our DEAR President.

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Hepatitis: the sleeper virus that changes lives

MANILA, Philippines - Aldrich Talledo and his family were all set to migrate to New Zealand last year. A nurse by profession, Talledo, like others who seek greener pastures abroad, felt this was the best way he could provide for his wife and children. Until he was diagnosed with hepatitis B and everything changed.

Hepatitis B, an endemic disease but mostly undiagnosed in the Philippines, affects one in eight adult Filipinos, according to the Hepatology Society of the Philippines. This means that an estimated 14 million adult Filipinos are chronically infected with hepatitis B virus, said Dr. Diana Payawal, HSP president, at a press briefing for World Hepatitis Day which will be marked on July 28.

Of the number of chronically infected Filipinos, between 1.1 million and 1.9 million are expected to die prematurely of liver cancer.

Around the world, between 350 million and 400 million people are chronically infected with hepatitis B, with Asia accounting for most, or an estimated 300 million of the cases, according to Payawal.

Hepatitis B is an asymptomatic disease with patients normally not knowing they have it until it develops to liver cirrhosis that causes liver cancer.

“Liver cancer is the third most common cause of cancer in the Philippines,” said Payawal adding that diagnosis for hepatitis B is low due to little awareness and because carriers do not feel symptoms.

Hepatitis B and C are called “silent” viruses and a person could infect someone without knowing it. If left untreated, both could lead to liver scarring and life-threatening complications and death.

There are no national data on the prevalence of hepatitis C in the Philippines, but a study done among prisoners and drug users shows that 35 percent of drug users and 50 percent of inmates in the country are suffering from the disease. The virus is transferred through infected blood.

Dr. Eternity Labio, HPS secretary, said 90 percent of hepatitis B cases come from perinatal transmission or from mother to child. Ten percent come from high risk behaviors such as those who have themselves tattooed or those using illegal drugs.

She clarified that the study on the prevalence of hepatitis B only involves adult Filipinos and may actually go up if children are included. It is a lifetime ailment although the virus could be “suppressed” through medication, Labio told InterAksyon.com.

Doctors urge the public to have themselves tested for hepatitis B and C and go for vaccination. It was only in 2006 when the Philippines made a commitment to provide 100-percent funding for hepatitis B immunization--allowing vaccination within 24 hours of birth rather than at six weeks of age of an infant, according to the website of the World Health Organization.

source: interaksyon.com

A fallback for unemployed nurses

MANILA, Philippines — To ease the unemployment woes of nursing graduates, a Quezon City councilor has filed a resolution that will include entrepreneurial subjects in the nursing curriculum.

Fourth District Councilor Jessica Castelo Daza said her proposal was meant to provide a fallback for nurses in case they land jobs outside of their nursing courses.

Under Resolution 5381, the Quezon City government will have to address the ballooning problem of unemployment of new nursing graduates by urging the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) to add entrepreneurial subjects in the course to help nursing graduates to venture into other fields in case of the unavailability of nursing jobs.

The never-ending story of what the nursing profession can offer to those who wanted to be successful in life is one of the reasons why the country produces an oversupply of nursing graduates who end up unemployed.

According to Daza, the majority of the nursing graduates fail to find employment in their preferred profession and finding the opportunity to have jobs related to their chosen career has become part of their efforts to survive after graduation.

It is a common knowledge, according to Daza, that nursing job opportunities in the country are scarce, hence, most of nursing graduates opted to work abroad as caregivers, dental assistants, nursing aides, or become part of the unemployment statistics.

Daza wants the city’s nursing graduates to be successful entrepreneurs but they will have to prepare for it while in the nursing schools.

There are more than 450 nursing schools in the country that produce hundreds of thousands of nursing graduates annually.

Most of the nursing graduates, even those who passed the board examinations, have remained unemployed due to the decreasing demand for the profession.

source: mb.com.ph

Pinay nurses in Austria lauded for contribution to healthcare

Austrian Federal Minister for Labor, Social Affairs and Consumer Protection Rudolf Hundstorfer praised Filipino nurses in Austria for their “very important contribution” to their host country’s healthcare system.

In his remarks during the 10th anniversary of the Philippine Nurses Association Austria on December 3, Hundstorfer "thanked the Filipino nurses in Austria for their very important contribution to the country’s healthcare system," the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.

Hundstorfer noted that a good healthcare system was "one of the criteria in the 2011 Quality of Living survey set by the global consulting firm Mercer in choosing Vienna as the best place to live in the world for three consecutive years,” the DFA said.

Hundstorfer and Philippine Ambassador Lourdes Yparraguirre were the special guests at the event.

Yparraguirre lauded the nurses for their “hard work, high skills and dedication” that helped open the gates for other nurses from the Philippines to go to Austria.

“Under a bilateral agreement, Filipino nurses came to Austria, first in trickle, then in groups. In virtually every corner of this country, there is nothing but praise for Filipino nurses. And many Austrians who have never heard of the Philippines learn about us through the most positive examples - you! Our nurses overseas are truly some of the best ambassadors of the Filipino people,” she said.

She likewise highlighted the recognition awarded by the City of Vienna to Filipino and Filipino-Austrian nurses and caregivers for their long years of dedicated services to the health sector of Austria.

The DFA said there are about 30,000 Filipino-Austrians in Austria. - VVP, GMA News

source:gmanetwork.com