On December 7, 1999, the Directorate Nursing Services organised a one-day conference with the theme Nursing - Our Future The Way Ahead. I attended this interesting conference but can we say that the situation has since then improved?

J. Caruana, in a comment on the MUMN Disappointed Over Deployment Of Nurses (timesofmalta.com, May 4) states that he is one of the newly-qualified nurses who was posted in the ward on a date of birth basis.

This was not according to his choice of work. He even argued that all the new nurses were placed according to their date of birth.

Mr Caruana said that three of his newly-qualified colleagues have already resigned and are presently working at a private hospital in the ward of their choice.

Another four newly-qualified nurses did not even apply with the Department of Health because they knew they had no chance to work in the ward they wished while two other nurses went to work abroad.

According to the comments by Mr Caruana, we have a situation that needs urgent attention by the minister or even the Prime Minister himself. How can we accept that from a low number of 22 newly-qualified nurses nine are lost? This is happening at a time when the Health Division is facing a huge shortage of nurses.

If the comment submitted by Mr Caruana is true, even when saying that the placements were done according to the date of birth, I ask:

Why are interviews held? Why are the final results not based on pass or fail basis only?

Yes, it is the duty of the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses to complain over the way the Health Department deploys newly-recruited nurses.

How can a nurse be treated as a number?