(File photo) MANILA - The Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PHAPI) on Monday asked the government to regulate the overseas employment of healthcare workers (HCWs), especially nurses. PHAPI president Dr. Rene de Grano said in a televised public briefing that the major cause of declining numbers of HCWs is nurses leaving the country. "Siguro naman po ay dapat kontrolin ng gobyerno iyan. Hindi naman po naman namin sinasabi na i-stop o pigilan iyan (The government may need to control that. We're not saying to stop or control it)," he said. The number of nurses and doctors in the country is important as it dictates the capacity of hospitals to accommodate more patients even though many hospital beds are available. "Halimbawa po sa isang 100-bed hospital, kailangan natin ng isang daang nurses, eh kung available lang po ay limampu, so 'yun po ang magiging batayan ng pag-a-admit natin ng ating pasyente, 'yun po ang limitasyon natin right now sa