Philippines To Lower Bar For Nurses

Blaise Enosario, 36, has thought about working overseas ever since she entered nursing school.

 

After failing the nursing board exams the first time around, Enosario spent eight years preparing to take the test again before earning her licence last year.

Since August, Enosario has worked at a hospital in Laguna province, southeast of Manila, earning 700 Philippine pesos ($12.8) per 12-hour day.

 

But as soon as Enosario racks up more experience, she hopes to land a position abroad.

 

“You can’t build a life here,” Enosario said. “When I get out, I’m not coming back. I’ll take my family with me.”

 

Enosario’s unhappiness with her pay and working conditions is not unusual in the Philippines, where an exodus of healthcare professionals has prompted the government to consider hiring unlicensed nursing graduates.

 

Under the plans announced by the Department of Health (DOH) last month, nursing graduates who have not passed the board exams would be granted a temporary licence to help fill 4,500 urgently-needed positions in government hospitals. To qualify for the temporary licence, graduates would need to receive a grade of at least 70 percent in the exam, which usually requires 75 percent to pass.

 

Nurses going overseas For decades, the Philippines has been one of the biggest sources of nurses worldwide.

 

The DOH estimated in 2021 that 316,000 licensed Filipino nurses, or 51 percent of the total number of those qualified, had migrated overseas.

 

DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa has argued the recent change is necessary as hospitals are reducing their bed capacities due to being unable to meet nurse-to-patient ratios.

Herbosa has also said that firsthand work experience would be beneficial for graduates, many of whom have a hard time saving up and prepering for their exams.

 

 

 

 

Aljazeera/Oyenike Oyeniyi