‘More realistic’ exam for nurses in Japan eyed

YOKOHAMA, Japan—The Department of Trade and Industry and Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (Meti) will be holding a series of meetings to discuss ways to help foreign nurses, especially Filipinos, pass the Japanese nursing licensure examination.

In an interview with the Inquirer here Saturday, Trade Undersecretary Adrian Cristobal Jr. said the Meti had committed to review the current exam and make necessary adjustments to it without sacrificing its current high standards.

He said one of the considerations was the short amount of time—just six months—that Filipino nurses had to learn Nihongo before taking the licensure exam.

The exam is given entirely in Japanese.

“We want to find a reasonable and effective process. We’ll schedule meetings between us and the Meti to make the test more realistic without lowering its standards. The Meti will make its review then get back to us,” he said.

He related that the Japanese government was keen on getting more Filipino nurses, thus its willingness to review its current licensure exam.

This review, he said, was part of the bilateral Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement, or the Jpepa.

Under the Jpepa, Filipino nurses can take Japan’s nursing licensure exam a total of three times. The Japanese government will extend their temporary stay in Japan as long as they are still within the three-take limit.

A Filipino nurse, Ever Lalin, was the first and only Filipino nurse to pass the licensure exam last February. So far, Lalin and two Indonesians are the only foreigners who got passing marks out of the 264 examinees, which also included Japanese nurses.

Lalin is now working in the intensive care unit of the Ashikaga Red Cross Hospital in the Tochigi Prefecture.

Other Filipino nurses are currently in Japan, hoping to follow in Lalin’s footsteps, Ashikaga Red Cross Hospital director Satoru Komatsumoto told the Inquirer in a separate interview. –Abigail L. Ho
Philippine Daily Inquirer