Ho Ching: Preschool staff should have “similar pledge and code of conduct” to nurses

SINGAPORE: In the wake of the mistreatment of toddlers at the hands of their teacher in two Kinderland centres last month, Mdm Ho, the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong wrote in a Facebook post that people who work in the country’s preschools should have the same kind of pledge and code of ethics that the country’s nurses have.

Mdm Ho also shared a 2021 video of nurses from Singapore General Hospital reciting a pledge: “To provide a competent standard of care for the sick, regardless of race, religion, and status, sparing no effort to alleviate suffering and promote health.”

“All professional nurses in Sg have a pledge as well as an ethical code to guide their practice under the Singapore Nursing Board regulations. All preschool staff should have a similar pledge and code of conduct.

This should cover everyone involves in pre-school services, from contract staff to principal; from operator management and board to regulator staff and board; from infant care to nursery and kindergarten, and well into the early years of primary school,” she wrote.

She also posted the Singapore Nursing Board (SNB) Code for Nurses and Midwives, which covers 10 principles of conduct as an ethical guide to the daily work and decisions of nurses and midwives in the country.

The SNB may proceed with disciplinary action against the nurses and midwives in cases of professional misconduct.

The EDCA is also making CCTVs a requirement in every preschool and government-funded early intervention centre beginning from July 1, 2024. /TISG

Govt makes CCTV camera installation mandatory at all preschools following Kinderland child ill-treatment case