Philippine Overseas Employment Agency data shows USA "New Hires" of graduate nurses from the Philippines declined dramatically from a high of 373 Nurses in 2004 to a paltry 133 Nurses in 2006.
TOTAL Foreign "New Hires" to all countries dropped from 13,822 deployed in 2001 to a mere 8, 528 Nurses in 2006. With 900,000 new student nurses, where are the job prospects?
STORY BELOW:
POEA data shows a decline in deployment of new hires. (See page 42 of POEA table). From a high of 13,822 deployed new hires in 2001, deployment decreased to 8,528 in 2006. Significant drops in deployment of new hires happened in the following receiving countries:
-Saudi Arabia: from 5,626 in 2004 to 2,886 in 2006;
-United Kingdom: from 800 in 2004 to 139 in 2006;
-US: from 373 in 2004 to 133 in 2006;
-Kuwait: from 408 in 2004 to 191 in 2006;
-Qatar: from 318 in 2004 to 38 in 2006;
What then lies ahead for Filipino nurses?
In her study, "Producing the 'World-Class' Nurse: The Philippine System of Nursing and Education Supply," Kristel Acacio, a doctoral candidate of the Department of Sociology in the University of California, said nursing graduates who can't find a job abroad can go into three alternative fields: teaching, medical transcription, and call centers.
Acacio warned that if deployment of nurses continues to slow down, the Philippines will face a "great surge in unemployment as well as underemployment."
Beyond nursing
Grace Abella, vice president of the Personnel Management Association of the Philippines told abs-cbnnews.com/Newsbreak in an earlier interview that students and parents should look beyond nursing and consider alternative courses such as accountancy, engineering and information technology (IT) courses.
"Companies here and abroad are always looking for accountants, engineers, IT experts. Students should take up courses related to such professions," she said. Deployment of IT new hires has risen since 2004. (See table 26 of POEA table)
nursing is not for everybody, nursing is for those who deserve it.the mental, physical as well as the emotional aspect of nursing is very demanding for those who persevere let alone the financial capability to go thru nursing school...thats where i think the line between taking up nursing and those who REALLY want to be nurses divide those who want to earn lots of money by becoming a nurse and those who push the profession to excellence...but dreaming of financially becoming a success is for everybody and there's nobody to tell you that you cant do it...because there are lots of people taking up nursing not knowing the demands nurses go thru in the profession, the end result is a suit and a broken heart...theres only one thing i can tell other aspiring nurses out there...if you really want to be a nurse...be a nurse by heart, learn nursing by heart, not just for an easy diploma...if you earned your badge by heart...nursing as your career and profession really pays back bigtime...no matter what...
Any facility where you are paying for training is not accepted in the US as actual work experience. It is considered training and nothing more than that.
yup...i agree....paid work is more relevant...no shortcuts...
what do you propose we should do then? i am a nurse but i have not had any work experience as of yet. i trained in a very prestigious hospital in manila, hoping to get in but unfortunately, they have stopped hiring. my parents do not want me to work anything else BUT a nursing job. argh! its soo frustrating. just depresses me ALL the time. i heard australia has a bridging program we could try but like all things, nothing's really certain. And did i mention, that THAT is requiring us to shell out a BIG sum of money???!!! ADVICE ANYONE?!
I'm feeling soo bad about this. And this is my BIRTHDAY.
what do you propose we should do then? i am a nurse but i have not had any work experience as of yet. i trained in a very prestigious hospital in manila, hoping to get in but unfortunately, they have stopped hiring. my parents do not want me to work anything else BUT a nursing job. argh! its soo frustrating. just depresses me ALL the time. i heard australia has a bridging program we could try but like all things, nothing's really certain. And did i mention, that THAT is requiring us to shell out a BIG sum of money???!!! ADVICE ANYONE?!
I'm feeling soo bad about this. And this is my BIRTHDAY.
Happy Birthday! Many many hugs to you! This is what I hate about the Philippines, you work hard for your education and degree and yet your own country wont hire you. You have to "pay" for training, isn't that why you're in school. If there is vacancy then they should hire you. If there is a need for nurses then they should hire you. What your BON, Nursing Schools, Students, Nursing Graduates & Current Nurses should do is rally to get your government to intervene and put a stop to this paid training stuff. It's not good for you, and you're just being used and abused. To me what they're doing is slave labor and that's not right. You're human and should be treated as such. If the hospitals want you to be trained more, then fine, maybe you could work something out with the hospital that you're willing to do on the job training for a certain amount of time as a new grad. But it should be put into a contract that you train with them, and once your training is complete then you can start working on the floor as a nurse.
From what I've heard from my many many Filipino friends that graduated from school in the Philippines. They were well prepared because they had a lot of clinical experience while in school. Now this was awhile back when they graduated and this was when the education in nursing was great. I've spoken to a few graduates who feel they aren't well prepared after graduation. So if you're in that category, what makes you feel that you weren't prepared? What tasks should you have done in nursing school that you never done before?
I also wanted to ask, what do you really want to do? Do you really want to be a nurse? I noticed you said that your parents don't want you to do anything but nursing. But what about you? This is your life, not your parents and it should be your choice to be a nurse not theirs.
Two issues, American Nursing Education has been noted for the lack of clinical experience, this shift took place with the demise of the diploma programs. LPNs get more hands on experience than their RN counterparts.
Second, most US nurses have the independence to want nursing and don't depend on their parents in the career choice.
Happy Birthday! Many many hugs to you! This is what I hate about the Philippines, you work hard for your education and degree and yet your own country wont hire you. You have to "pay" for training, isn't that why you're in school. If there is vacancy then they should hire you. If there is a need for nurses then they should hire you. What your BON, Nursing Schools, Students, Nursing Graduates & Current Nurses should do is rally to get your government to intervene and put a stop to this paid training stuff. It's not good for you, and you're just being used and abused. To me what they're doing is slave labor and that's not right. You're human and should be treated as such. If the hospitals want you to be trained more, then fine, maybe you could work something out with the hospital that you're willing to do on the job training for a certain amount of time as a new grad. But it should be put into a contract that you train with them, and once your training is complete then you can start working on the floor as a nurse.
From what I've heard from my many many Filipino friends that graduated from school in the Philippines. They were well prepared because they had a lot of clinical experience while in school. Now this was awhile back when they graduated and this was when the education in nursing was great. I've spoken to a few graduates who feel they aren't well prepared after graduation. So if you're in that category, what makes you feel that you weren't prepared? What tasks should you have done in nursing school that you never done before?
I also wanted to ask, what do you really want to do? Do you really want to be a nurse? I noticed you said that your parents don't want you to do anything but nursing. But what about you? This is your life, not your parents and it should be your choice to be a nurse not theirs.
Thank you very very much there Latina for acknowledging my birthday! You are the only person who actually greeted me nad for someone who don't really know me... that means a lot. You knnow you are exactly right on all the things you said.. Seems like you have clear view of what its like to be nurse here in the Philippines. I'm mighty glad for you that you are there now.. maybe there are more chances opening your direction.
Nursing in the Philippines is great actually. My school was No. 1 in our Board Exams recently, and 2 of them got in to the Top 10. Basically, its the theories that are our strengths. I'm not speaking for everyone here but just in my opinion, since the surge of people taking up nursing, so many schools sprout from nowhere without actual clinical expertise or hospital to back them up. In short, their students do not have the same type of clinical exposure to train them as well as some other schools do. Fortunately, my school was very well established and so I have no such problems. What is lacking though is the opportunity to grow in our own career path.
I really wanted to be a psychologist and my parents believed that that would lead me nowhere. And so here I am. Initially I was totally against it, but as its continually thrust upon you then somehow you get accustomed to it that you can't imagine doing anything else. In the Philippines, most people I know don't have the luxury to make our own choices on what to do with our life. I know thats sad, and truthfully, I rebel a lot about thsi because I really belive in making my life how I want it. Nevertheless, we succumb to their wishes because the thought of doing the opposite just brings to much guilt. As for me, I plan to pursue this as long as I can but I will not let go of my own childhood dreams of being a psychologist and helping kids.
Thank you very very much there Latina for acknowledging my birthday! You are the only person who actually greeted me nad for someone who don't really know me... that means a lot. You knnow you are exactly right on all the things you said.. Seems like you have clear view of what its like to be nurse here in the Philippines. I'm mighty glad for you that you are there now.. maybe there are more chances opening your direction.
Nursing in the Philippines is great actually. My school was No. 1 in our Board Exams recently, and 2 of them got in to the Top 10. Basically, its the theories that are our strengths. I'm not speaking for everyone here but just in my opinion, since the surge of people taking up nursing, so many schools sprout from nowhere without actual clinical expertise or hospital to back them up. In short, their students do not have the same type of clinical exposure to train them as well as some other schools do. Fortunately, my school was very well established and so I have no such problems. What is lacking though is the opportunity to grow in our own career path.
I really wanted to be a psychologist and my parents believed that that would lead me nowhere. And so here I am. Initially I was totally against it, but as its continually thrust upon you then somehow you get accustomed to it that you can't imagine doing anything else. In the Philippines, most people I know don't have the luxury to make our own choices on what to do with our life. I know thats sad, and truthfully, I rebel a lot about thsi because I really belive in making my life how I want it. Nevertheless, we succumb to their wishes because the thought of doing the opposite just brings to much guilt. As for me, I plan to pursue this as long as I can but I will not let go of my own childhood dreams of being a psychologist and helping kids.
I don't think I have a clear view of nursing in he Philippines, I just know what my friends tell me. I couldn't possibly know how it feels because I wasn't educated there. I see how your people are being treated by your own governmen and it just irks me.....I've learned a lot about the education there and also education in differen countries. I like to learn new things on how they do things in other countries in nursing. From what I've learned so far about the Philippines, I don't like it. I know there are a lot of positive things about the education there, like for example, you get a lot of clinical time and I think that's great, but the experience I'm really unsure about.
I think I know what your parents are saying regarding being a psychologist, they do hold some valid points. Realistically it's hard to be a psychologist, but if it's something that you really want to do, I'd persue it. At least you do have nursing to fall back on. Just remember this is your life and you need to focus on what you want to do. Don't do something just because your parents want you to do it. You don't want to be miserable in the end. Hope you had a great birthday! :nuke:
I don't think I have a clear view of nursing in he Philippines, I just know what my friends tell me. I couldn't possibly know how it feels because I wasn't educated there. I see how your people are being treated by your own governmen and it just irks me.....I've learned a lot about the education there and also education in differen countries. I like to learn new things on how they do things in other countries in nursing. From what I've learned so far about the Philippines, I don't like it. I know there are a lot of positive things about the education there, like for example, you get a lot of clinical time and I think that's great, but the experience I'm really unsure about.
I think I know what your parents are saying regarding being a psychologist, they do hold some valid points. Realistically it's hard to be a psychologist, but if it's something that you really want to do, I'd persue it. At least you do have nursing to fall back on. Just remember this is your life and you need to focus on what you want to do. Don't do something just because your parents want you to do it. You don't want to be miserable in the end. Hope you had a great birthday! :nuke:
All in all it WAS great birthday! Thanks!
There are a lot of great school here in the Philippines, but you have to go and make sure they have produced quality nurses... rather than what they call a 'diploma mill.' Hopefully, the government is working with the Philippine Nurses Association to augment our current problem of ovesupply and unemployment.
Not good roight, considering you studied 4 years to be then, unemployed.
.it is true that there are a lot of issues that the Philippine government, as well as the nursing associations needs to address. this is the bitter truth. many studied nursing, earned a degree and ended up unemployed.
in the recent nle, approx 80 thou took the exam. only half will surely pass. can you imagine what will happen in the new nurses? there is a slowing down of employment in local hospitals because few vacate the positions due to nurses chose to remain in the country.and maybe pending application affected by retrogression.more so, these nursing graduates end up in the call center industries because it is these are the only options they could have. it maybe true that various opportunity abroad, but the competition is tough! they require you to be competent,that can only be receive from didactic work experience..
its better to think twice before taking up nursing.
It's ironic that this situation notwithstanding, the government wants to add another year to nursing education. It boggles the mind where the rationale for this bright idea came from!
Specializes in Neuro-Surgery, Med-Surg, Home Health.
It's ironic that this situation notwithstanding, the government wants to add another year to nursing education. It boggles the mind where the rationale for this bright idea came from!
I beg to disagree with you. Adding another year to many college courses in the Philippines is a very good idea. I heard a report yesterday on the Filipino cable channel here in the SF Bay Area that stated that the Philippines, along with the country of Botswana, are the only countries that have only 10 years of basic education required to finish a college degree, instead of 12 years that is the standard worldwide. With all due respect to Botswana, I don't think it is a good thing to be grouped with that famished African country.
Hopefully, adding another year to complete a nursing course in the Philippines many will be deterred to enroll in a course that is already extremely overcrowded.
In the economically advanced countries in Asia such as Japan, South Korea and Singapore their students even take extracullicular classes in order to better prepare themselves and hopefully be admitted to their top universities. Compare them to the many Filipino students who are ill-prepared to enter college. To make matters worse, many go to sub-standard nursing schools that are nothing but diploma mills. The result is the poor passing rates in the Philippine Licensure Nursing Examination and poorly educated and poorly trained nurses.
If you are reading this and are a graduate of a sub-standard school of nursing in the Philippines, and that your grades are low, you took the NLE more than once, you don't have a minimum of two years hospital experience. Pretend I'm a recruiter for a lucrative overseas nursing job, how can you convince me to hire you instead of the THOUSANDS of other applicants who posses better credentials than you.
i heard australia has a bridging program we could try but like all things, nothing's really certain. And did i mention, that THAT is requiring us to shell out a BIG sum of money???!!! ADVICE ANYONE?!
.it is true that there are a lot of issues that the Philippine government, as well as the nursing associations needs to address. this is the bitter truth. many studied nursing, earned a degree and ended up unemployed.
risperdal
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i'm moving towards entrepreneurship...some friends and i are thinking of coming up with an alternative medicine health spa in the future