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Fresh Singapore nursing graduates eligible for S$15,000 sign-on bonus

Fresh Singapore nursing graduates eligible for S$15,000 sign-on bonus

The bonus was announced by Health Minister Ong Ye Kung during a Nurses’ Merit Award (NMA) ceremony on Jul 19, 2023. (Photo: Ministry of Health)

SINGAPORE: Fresh nursing graduates in Singapore will be eligible for a S$15,000 (US$11,300) sign-on bonus, as part of efforts to build up the country's nursing manpower, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Wednesday (Jul 19).

Announced by Health Minister Ong Ye Kung during a Nurses’ Merit Award (NMA) ceremony on Wednesday, the bonus will be extended to fresh nursing graduates from Institutes of Higher Learning in Singapore, who have not taken up a sponsorship or scholarship.

To be eligible, they must be Singapore citizens or permanent residents, and graduate in 2023 from Nanyang Polytechnic, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, the National University of Singapore or the Singapore Institute of Technology; or from an Institute of Technical Education (ITE) in December 2022.

The bonus will apply to graduates who join public healthcare clusters or publicly funded residential community care organisations between Jan 1 and Dec 31 this year.

Eligible nurses will receive the bonus in three tranches of S$5,000 each, paid out at the start of employment and at the end of their first then second year of service.

MOH added that the S$15,000 bonus will also extend to fresh graduate nurses who were working part-time in the public healthcare clusters or publicly-funded residential community care organisations, before converting to full-timers in the same institution in 2023.

Male graduates from ITE's December 2020 graduation cohort and the polytechnics’ March 2021 graduation cohorts, who will join the nursing workforce this year after their National Service (NS) obligations, are also eligible for the bonus.

The same goes for freshly graduated male nurses who need to serve NS and will only join the workforce in 2025.

"As long as they accept a conditional job offer by Dec 31, 2023, and join any of the above-mentioned institutions as full-time nurses immediately after the completion of their NS, they would be eligible for the sign-on bonus," said MOH.

Mr Ong noted in his speech that even though one in 25 students who enrol in ITE, polytechnics or the autonomous universities take up nursing, the enrolment into nursing programmes is "not enough".

"Today, two-thirds of the available pool of nursing graduates enter the sector ... the other one-third join other sectors. If we are faster in encouraging our nursing graduates to join the healthcare workforce, it will help address our manpower needs significantly," he said.

The Health Ministry said it was on track to exceed its target of bringing in 4,000 nurses this year, which was first announced by Mr Ong in November 2022.

In the first half of 2023, public healthcare clusters recruited about 2,000 new nurses through "intensified" local and overseas recruitment, and they expect to recruit another 2,000 by the end of the year, said MOH, adding that including private sector recruitment would take the number past 4,000.

As there is an "intense international competition" for nurses, the development, recruitment and retention of nursing talent must therefore be a "key priority", said Mr Ong.

The ministry noted that the public healthcare clusters and community care organisations had recently enhanced their sponsorships for nursing studies in Institutes of Higher Learning.

03:06 Min

Fresh nursing graduates in Singapore will be eligible for a S$15,000 (US$11,300) sign-on bonus, as part of efforts to build up the country's nursing manpower, said the Ministry of Health (MOH) on Wednesday (Jul 19). Sherlyn Seah with more.

"The sponsorships now cover at least half of a student’s tuition fees, going up to full tuition fees for ITE nursing students. Monthly allowances during studies are also provided," said MOH.

The ministry is also looking into a long-term retention scheme for nurses.

MORE HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME BEDS

The Health Ministry said it would also address bed capacity issues in acute hospitals by adding 280 beds this year.

The opening of the Tan Tock Seng Hospital-Integrated Care Hub (TTSH-ICH) in September will provide 120 beds; while 20 will be added to Alexandra Hospital, 100 to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and 40 to Sengkang Hospital.

About 100 beds will also be added to the Mobile Inpatient Care@Home model, which delivers inpatient-level services to the homes of patients who require acute hospital care.

In the rehabilitation or step-down care segment, 280 more community hospital beds will be added, including at the new TTSH-ICH as well as Woodlands Health campus when its community hospital progressively opens from Dec 2023.

New beds will also be added to the Jurong, Outram and Sengkang community hospitals.

"We can also procure beds from the private hospitals, if possible, to serve as subsidised public hospital wards," said Mr Ong.

More Transitional Care Facilities will also open this year, with one in the west near Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and two in the central region. This will add about 340 beds, allowing beds in hospitals to be freed up for patients receiving acute or medical care, said MOH.

For nursing homes, 310 beds will be added by the end of 2023, which will mainly come from the opening of a new home and expansion of two existing ones.

Mr Ong said: "If we can successfully transfer acute patients who do not need acute care to these new and more appropriate settings, it is equivalent to adding one new regional hospital to our system by the end of this year."

Source: CNA/rc(jo)

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