Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

It is as simple as this:
volunteer = dedicating oneself unto something without expecting anything in return (what is gained? knowledge and experience) i.e. medical mission
work = sharing one's strengths and talents in an organization to get something "profitable" i.e. becoming a staff nurse

Here are the questions:
Can you put all of your hospital related experiences if those are not work?
Were all of our RLE's done during our college days?
How would you consider volunteer as work if it lacks compensation?
Would you consider this situation in the country as "taking advantage" over newly RNs?

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

Since the Philippine school do not weed out students and there are over 400,000 nurses for 60,000 positions in the Philippines, the volunteer system is a way seeing who is really serious about being a Philippine nurse. It is a horrible system but tolerated by the Philippine nurses.

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

RN's like me choose to go on paid post grad. training/ pre-employment training with or without a fee while trying to get employed to maintain our skills in the clinical areas. its also a plus when applying for work especially for fresh graduates.

The government and other authorities seem to have no teeth when implementing regulations to stop this exploitation. Hospitals choose to get volunteers instead of hiring nurses to add to their workforce. Most staff nurses in government hospitals are overworked and underpaid and I dont see any reason why the government shouldnt increase its funding to hire more nurses like us and get our just compensation.

this is a really sad and I hate being part of it..

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

I was one of the volunteer nurse in the Philippines and our responsibilities is Receiving endorsements,joining rounds with the staff, taking vital signs, assist in nursing procedures, nurse-patient interaction,.Mostly assist. However some staffs allowed volunteer nurse to practice what we need to learn, sometimes giving medication, having an IV Insertion commonly for IVT License holder.,and then ASSIST in everything. After all of this,.we will receive our certificate that serves as a proof that we undergo a months of work as a volunteer in a specific area.

We worked most on Assisting,. so it will not count as a Nursing experience,. Maybe as an experience as a Nursing aide,.lolz!!

Better to apply even in primary hospitals,. it will count as nursing experience even a 15 bed capacity,.

Goodluck to us!...

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

Before, I also have conservative views regarding this "volunteer nursing" system in the PI.
But after months of wasted time, I realized that it's much better than having no experience
at all.

However, I still believe that the ones who are truly benefitting from this are the hospitals,
especially those who ask for payment. I resent it but I had to swallow my pride. Anyway, I went to an
agency hiring nurses to Canada and they told me volunteer experience can be considered as work experience.

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

Originally Posted by judeamaria

Before, I also have conservative views regarding this "volunteer nursing" system in the PI.
But after months of wasted time, I realized that it's much better than having no experience
at all.

However, I still believe that the ones who are truly benefitting from this are the hospitals,
especially those who ask for payment. I resent it but I had to swallow my pride. Anyway, I went to an
agency hiring nurses to Canada and they told me volunteer experience can be considered as work experience.

That is good that at least Canada is considering it as work experience....However, I believe that the hospitals are exploiting the RN graduates in the Philippines and the Filipino government should put a stop to it. You deserve to be compensated for all your hard work....I believe that nursing school is an experience itself and that once you're finished you should be hired as a staff nurse in your own country instead of volunteering for a fee...

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

i also had a negative view on volunteer nursing before, but after 10 months since i had my duty and was exposed to the ward, i just realized that if i continue to just look for a hospital that would hire me and wait for them to call me (all those who called me are for volunteer so i declined), i might forget my nursing skills. then just one day, i got a call from a hospital telling me that i got accepted as a volunteer, and instead of closing myself to the idea, i thought of it as a good thing. the first thing i asked them during the interview is that whether or not i'll just be doing vital signs, and assist the staff. luckily, in that hospital, they let the volunteers do everything! they don't even let us do the vital signs (the nurse aides do it). i administer medications (all routes, except intrathecal of course hehe), ivs, carry out orders, chart, etc. During my first day, i was even reluctant to open an ampule because i thought i already forgot how to do so. Now, i get to practice my nursing skills (while waiting for a hospital that would hire me) and i don't have to pay anything for it.

It is also a good thing that it is near our home so i don't spend much to go there, and i bring my "baon" so that i don't have to buy outside.

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

With the thousands of nursing students I would think the nurses would not need the help of volunteers.

How many patients do students take?

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

Originally Posted by Alexk49

With the thousands of nursing students I would think the nurses would not need the help of volunteers.

How many patients do students take?

in the hospital where i volunteer, student nurses do not do much. what they do are the vital signs, intake and output, and sometimes, charting. all the things that they are going to do still passes through us. we have to be careful in assigning tasks to them because if they do it incorrectly, our licenses are at stake (since they are only students and we, volunteer nurses, are still responsible for our patients). in the ward (with 60 bed capacity), there are only 2 staff nurses (1 is the head nurse, 1 is the charge nurse) and there are 5 volunteers. the student nurses do not assist in all 60... they only assist in about 15-20 patients.

Re: Volunteer Nurses: Counted as a Work Experience?

First of all best of luck in your interview. I hope you get the position you want.

I find it very confusing to figure out what does a student nurse do in the Philippines. First of all you have an inexperienced instructor. In the US the students are working on the instructor's license not the the staff's license.

Second as a student you are responsible for everything. All the medications and treatments. The only exception is hanging blood which needs to be done by staff. So when I am on a floor with 8 students and we are caring for 10 patients, that is 10 patients taken off the staff's assignment.

Third, what you describe as a student is nurse's aide work and where is the instructor. I ask my students to ask me questions since I am the one who is getting paid to supervise the students.

Thanks for the information.