filipino doctors will be barred from migrating and working abroad to avert the risk of a shortage of medical practitioners, if health secretary francisco duque iii is to have his way.
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"of course, authorities will not allow it. political leaders will not allow that. i will not allow it. if i have to respond to it today, i will close the door," duque said.
according to duque, the migrant workers and overseas filipinos act of 1995 (republic act 8043) allows the government to implement this extreme measure, especially "when the profession is deemed mission-critical."
"the government has the authority, the power, to close the exit doors," he said.
the ban on deployment is in section 5 of the law, which states that the labor secretary, "in pursuit of the national interest or when public welfare so requires, may, at any time, terminate or impose a ban on the deployment of migrant workers."
a big number of doctors have also studied or are studying to become nurses for them to be able to work overseas.
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asked if preventing filipino doctors from leaving the country would not violate their rights, duque said: "i will give you this question: when do individual human rights end and national interest begin?"
duque said that in the late 1990s, the government invoked the deployment ban in the migrant workers act to stop the exodus of filipino pilots.
"they were all leaving and threatening the integrity of the airline industry. what the labor department and the other relevant agencies did was to invoke [the migrant workers act]. we have to protect the national interest," he said.
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wrong approach to retain people.
i think using carrots will be more effective: just raise their salaries. and stop taxing the professional fees.
people are willing to pay p1,500 for a hair rebond, but only p200 for a consult with a doctor. with their 12% tax, this leaves p176 for the doctor.
if the doctors are earning enough, they would not even be thinking of taking up nursing.
and yeah, there is a corollary to this. aside from doctors, the doh had been harping about the loss of experienced nurses.
does this mean that the doh will also shut the door for experienced nurses too?
this would in effect allow only the fresh nursing graduates to leave.
but--there is also a proposed bill in congress to force nurses to work for 2 years before being allowed to leave.
we're gonna have a lot of angry and frustrated doctors and nurses...
And not all judges are at the top of the payscale, same thing with attorneys. There are many that are at the lower rates of pay, it is just that you hear more of the ones that make more. But there are many others, that is for sure.
And if they wish to leave your country, they will have it hard to find a job in that area. That is why nursing is jumping up and biting them. But it may also burn some of them as well.
"many students prefer to take up nursing rather than medicine," nisperos said.
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to address the situation, the alliance is calling on the department of health to come up with relevant solutions rather than rely on stopgap measures to stop the exodus of doctors to other countries.
the group also rejected health secretary francisco duque's plan to invoke the migrant workers and overseas filipinos act of 1995 to prevent the exit of doctors in the name of "national interest."
the health department is proposing solutions without recognizing the roots of the problem, nisperos said.
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nisperos pointed to at least two fundamental issues that he said needed to be addressed: how to make medicine a viable option again, and the government's lack of support for doctors and the entire health care delivery system.
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nisperos said many doctors were frustrated because even if they wanted to serve and treat indigent patients, there was very little government support to allow them to do so.
hospital equipment and facilities were deteriorating, drugs were scarce, and public hospitals were left to fend for themselves because of their low budget allocations, he said.
he added that doctors felt frustrated when they were caught between patients' expectations and the inadequacy of medical resources.
"many are overworked and underpaid. this situation is more greatly felt in the provinces, which is why it is even harder to convince those who stay to serve in far-flung areas," nisperos said.
even if the government succeeded in forcing doctors to stay, they would remain frustrated if the system was not improved, he said.
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"many are overworked and underpaid."
this statement applies to nurses as well, both in the private and public sectors.
health alliance for democracy (head) said in a statement that keeping doctors from leaving the country by invoking the migrant workers and overseas filipinos act of 1995 would not solve the problem of the dwindling numbers of filipino doctors.
"the doh (department of health) is proposing solutions without recognizing the roots of the problem," said dr. gene alzona nisperos, head secretary general. "this is why their solutions are untenable and token at best."
head said the decline in enrollment in medical schools and the government's lack of support for the health care delivery system have been the bane of the country's medical field.
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head pointed out the lack of government support for the country's health care delivery system forced doctors, particularly in the public sector, to seek greener pastures overseas.
earlier, duque told reporters that if he had his way, he would bar filipino doctors from migrating in light of a possible shortage of medical practitioners in the country.
i agree to HOSS, the government should intervene and build world class tertiary hospitals. Forcing doctors and nurses not to leave the country would outrage us. thats unfair, if they want our service, they should do their role FIRST, to be GREAT and GOOD leaders! To all government officials, dont expect us to stay in this country if you give us reasons not to stay! how dare you stop us from living this CORRUPT country. I dont want to pay my tax that ends up in your pockets! no way! i will only stay here in my country if i can see a transparent, efficient government not a corrupt one! seeesh.
Its funny that nurses have been deemed as the "Handmaiden" of the MDs during the old times(1960s). Looks like the the MDs want to be the Handmaiden this time if only to get out of the country.
suzanne4, RN
26,410 Posts
And not all judges are at the top of the payscale, same thing with attorneys. There are many that are at the lower rates of pay, it is just that you hear more of the ones that make more. But there are many others, that is for sure.
And if they wish to leave your country, they will have it hard to find a job in that area. That is why nursing is jumping up and biting them. But it may also burn some of them as well.