A licensing board in the Marianas has waived the nursing examination requirement for Fijian midwives so they can return and work at the hospital immediately.

The Commonwealth Health Care Professions Licensing Board adopted emergency regulations providing for the immediate licensing of midwives who previously practiced in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

The regulations were adopted amid a lack of midwives and support personnel to deliver new-born babies.

In a public notice, the board says the Commonwealth Health Centre will have no midwife in service if additional personnel are not recruited.

The Saipan Tribune reports there are three Saipan-based midwives available to CHC and three more in Fiji who are willing to return to Saipan immediately.

These midwives had to leave because local regulations classified them as nurses and they had failed to secure certification.

The board says it is a non-nursing regulator and does not require the passage of the written laws to support licensure for midwifery.

It adds the CHC has had excellent experience for years with its Fijian-trained midwives. Read more