WHAT MAKES US FILIPINOS (aka PINOY) DIFFERENT from the rest of the lovely people around the world? Well, the quick answer is that – every Pinoy has a relative who is working as a NURSE, either in the Philippines or abroad. Whether a sister or a brother, maybe a cousin, nephew and niece, or an aunt and uncle, even a neighbour – we have it all. It runs in our big and extended families!
DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY PINOY NURSES WORKING ABROAD? Thanks to google search engine and I was able to find it for you. According to a news article published in PhilStar.Com that between 12,000 and 15,000 nurses and other medical professionals leave the Philippines annually for better-paying jobs abroad. Majority of them end up in the US, UK, and the Middle East. Despite the drop in Sterling pound and US dollars, it is still lucrative to work abroad. It is estimated that nurses can work 12 hours a day, three days a week, earning between $45,000 and $50,000 annually - 10 to 15 times they will receive back in the Philippines.
The FilipinoNursesNews.com also reported that the opportunities for Pinoy nurses to work abroad are getting slimmer every year. The decline is due to the changes in “policy in destination countries, the oversupply and quality problems on our nurses.” For example, UK is one now limiting Filipino nurses by passing strict immigration policy, allowing local new graduates as priority pool than recruiting from overseas. This is a reality check for our aspiring graduates to get a job abroad after passing the licensure examination. Consequently, it will affect the nursing and health/medical education in the Philippines, and future graduates do not get an assurance to work overseas.
ON THE OTHER HAND, THOSE NURSES WHO ARE NOW WORKING AND LIVING HAPPILY ABROAD are fortunate enough to harvest their hardwork and generosity. One of them is my younger sister who did her best to get a job in Dubai. Im very proud of her after so many years of encouragement, even hiring her as my office secretary for the time being that she was looking for a proper position in a hospital/clinic back in Manila. It took 10 years for her dream to become a reality. I remembered that she took this job in Makati paying here soooo low, just to complete her Dialysis training program in Ortigas for a year as part of the employer requirements abroad. At the end, she managed to get a long-term contract in Dubai since 2006.
FEW MONTHS AGO, SHE ASKED ME IF I COULD WRITE A POEM to be entered in a local competition. Guided by the theme, “what nursing means to me”, I was able to write this poetic piece, thinking about my sister’s dedication to be one of our “carers of the world”. Having said that, I will take this opportunity to share and dedicate this poem to all the Filipino nurses around the globe, my simple way of saluting them for being the ”ambassadors” of the Philippines.
FINALLY, to my shy but generous and trusted sister BHEA, thank you and advance happy birthday!
blogger remos 7/30/09 Business World Read the original article here
http://www.bworldonline.com/BW073009/content.php?id=044
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