NURSING SHORTAGE & MIGRATION: US & PH WIN-WIN APPROACH

 

Imagine that you are a nurse, and you get an offer to work in the US. You are excited by the opportunity to earn more money, experience a different culture, and advance your career. You pack your bags and board the plane, ready to start a new life.

Two Filipino nurses found a need and filled it amid the US nursing shortage.

JERICK

Jerick Tabudlo, 29, left his home in the Philippines and arrived at Detroit Metropolitan Airport 16 hours later. He became an operating room nurse at Henry Ford Hospital.

“It’s exciting,” Jerick said on his first visit to the hospital. “Where I had my experience in the Philippines was at a hospital with a 100-bed capacity, so it’s a much bigger hospital catering to more sophisticated cases from different cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds.” Henry Ford has 877 licensed beds.

He earns between $70k and $100k a year, the same rate as all other nurses on staff. The hospital also pays for most of his immigration expenses and provides him with a furnished apartment near the hospital.

The hospital helps him with applying for a Social Security card, a driver’s license, and finding a local church. He realizes he needs a car to get around.

“They always say that I’m courageous to be coming here alone, but I’m just excited because it’s a new clinical environment and there are so many different specialties here,” Jerick said after meeting some co-workers for the first time. “I’m a person who always wants to learn.”

JAN

Six years ago, my daughter Jan, equipped with NCLEX-RN, flew to the US alone after being headhunted by Genesis Health Care from her five-year nursing job in the Mideast. She received paid traveling expenses, fetched by her bosses at the airport, and booked for a month-starter stay in a Marriot Hotel.

Schooled with a master's  degree, she works presently in DaVita Kidney Care as nurse practitioner, and has become a naturalized citizen. She now lives in Texas with her family of four in a home they own.

NURSING SHORTAGE

Jerick and Jan are two samples of the Philippines’ best products primed for the global market. They filled a need in the US healthcare system that suffers from a severe nursing shortage.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the US will need 1.1 million new registered nurses for expansion and replacement of retirees. The Bureau lists registered nurses among the top occupations in terms of job growth, expected to reach 3.4 million by 2026.

However, the US does not have enough nurses to meet this demand. The nursing schools nationally graduate only about 200,000 nurses a year. Many nurses are also reaching retirement age and leaving the workforce.

“You could have just taken nursing – the only job here in the US now that will assure you of the bright future.” Jan told her younger sister, Dionne, a management accounting graduate, who plans to join her sister in the US.

BENEFITS OF HIRING FILIPINO NURSES

To address the need in the healthcare system suffering from a severe nursing shortage, US hires foreign nurses, especially from the Philippines, because they have many advantages over other candidates. According to Eric Wallis, Henry Ford’s chief nursing officer, Filipino nurses have:

·         Pool of talent and training similar to the US standards

·         Proficiency in English and communication skills

·         Ample supply of nurses in their home country

·         Strong work ethic and dedication

Hiring Filipino nurses also benefits the Philippines economically, as they send remittances back to their families. According to the Central Bank of the Philippines, total remittances to the country account for 9% of gross domestic product.

CHALLENGES

However, hiring Filipino nurses has some drawbacks and challenges for both the US and the Philippines. For the US, it may not be a long-term solution to its nursing shortage, as it may create ethical and practical problems such as:

·         Exploitation of Filipino nurses by unscrupulous recruiters or employers who charge exorbitant fees, impose unfair contracts, or violate labor rights.

·         Discrimination and integration issue from colleagues or patients who do not respect or appreciate their culture or background.

·         Loss of skilled health workers in the Philippines that can worsen its fragile public health systems and contribute to global health inequity.

For Filipino nurses, migrating to the US may also pose some difficulties and risks such as:

·         Emotional stress and loneliness from leaving their families behind.

·         Cultural shock and adaptation from living and working in a different environment.

·         Uncertainty and insecurity depending on their visa status or employer sponsorship.

TWO-CENTS

To address these challenges, here are some recommendations for improving the situation of both countries and their respective nurses:

·         Investing more in nursing education, research, and practice in both countries, to increase the supply and quality of native-born and immigrant nurses.

·         Improving working conditions and environments for nurses in both countries, to enhance satisfaction, retention, and well-being.

·         Creating fair and sustainable recruitment practices and policies for foreign nurses to protect their interests, rights, and dignity.

·         Enhancing collaboration and cooperation among various stakeholders involved in nursing migration, such as government, employers, recruiters, educators, regulators, professional associations, and civil society groups.

THERE’S THE RUB

In the best of times, immigration attorney Amy Erlbacher-Anderson, who helps rural hospitals in the Midwest with visas for their international nurses, said in a Marketplace article, the visa process takes a year.

According to the most recent State Department visa bulletin, a Filipino nurse would have had to file their paperwork in 2020 to be issued a visa in 2023.

While Congress could pass legislation to increase visas for foreign nurses, Erlbacher-Anderson said that, after 20 years in the business, she’s not holding her breath.

Henry Ford’s leaders are encouraging lawmakers to pass legislation that would speed up the process for international nurses looking to come to the U.S. to help alleviate the shortage.

“Until the ink from the president’s pen is dry on that sheet of paper,” Erlbacher-Anderson said, “it’s not happening,”.

CONCLUSION

Hiring Filipino nurses is a complex phenomenon that has both positive and negative impacts on both the US and the Philippines. It requires careful consideration of benefits and challenges involved, as well as collaboration among various actors to ensure mutual respect, trust, and lasting value.

By following the recommendations, both countries can address the underlying causes or factors that contribute to the nursing shortage and migration, and promote the advancement and recognition of the nursing profession globally.

Content put together in collaboration with Microsoft Bing AI-powered co-pilot

Head collage photos courtesy of YouTube & Shutterstock

Video clips courtesy of YouTube