Isang Sabado nitong Hunyo, tinawagan ko si Chris (hindi tunay na pangalan), isang kaibigan mula pa noong high school, para siya ay kumustahin. Bagaman mahigit limang taon na kami hindi nagkikita, hindi naman nawala ang aming contact sa isa’t isa. Nabati ko pa nga siya sa Facebook noong Pebrero, kung kalian lumabas ang resulta ng December 2010 Nursing Board Exams. Isa siya sa 29,711 na bagong “registered nurses” (RN) ng bansa. Natural lang naman siguro na magdiwang ka at ang iyong buong pamilya kapag nakamit mo na ang inaasam na titulong “RN.”
Una, hindi madaling mag-aral ng nursing. Kung nakakalito na ang pag-aralan ang mga kagaya ng endoplastic reticulum, vacuoles, at mitochondria sa ating high school biology class, ano pa kaya kung ikaw ay nagpapakadalubhasa na hinggil sa human anatomy? Hindi nga ba’t may pagkakataon pa kung kalian kahit bangkay ng tao ay ginagamit nila para rito?
Pangalawa, lubhang magastos magpa-aral ng isang nursing student. Libo-libo ang kailangan mo gastahin para sa mga school fees, libro, iba’t ibang kagamitan, at pamasahe kapag panahon na ng internship. Kahit taga Maynila at marami naming ospital dito sa National Capital Region, mas malamang ay idestino ka sa isang karatig-lalawigan (gaya ng Pampanga o Cavite) para sa iyong on-the-job training. Siyempre, walang makakatanggi sa isang school requirement.
Nanumpa na si Chris sa kanyang propesyon noong Abril. Nagtapos si Chris mula sa isang respetadong pamantasan sa Maynila. Sa katunayan, sa halos 200 exam takers mula sa pamantasang iyon noong Disyembre 2010, lima lang ang hindi nakapasa sa board. Isang taon mahigit na mula nang magtapos sa pag-aaral si Chris, pero wala pa rin siyang trabaho. Ayon sa kanya, naghihintay daw sya ng placement sa Singapore, at kung papalarin, baka daw sa susunod na buwan ay tumulak na siya paroon.
Dagdag pa niya, limitado na raw ang opportunities para sa mga bagong nurse dito sa bansa. Kahit ang mga vacancy para sa pagiging company o school nurse, kailangan may work experience ka. At mahigpit talaga ang kompetisyon! Sa isang panayam sa Baguio City noong Mayo, nabanggit ni Health Sec. Enrique Ona na mahigit 200,000 nurses sa bansa ang naghahanap ng trabaho sa kasalukuyan. Ayon sa kanya, matagal nang bumababa ng demand ng mga bansa sa Kanluran gaya ng United Kingdom para sa mga nurses. Nagsimula daw ito bago pa man magkaroon ng global financial crisis.
Siyangapala, sa Hulyo, libo-libong nursing graduates na naman ang kukuha ng licensure exam. Kaysa mabakante ng matagal, pinipili ng ilan na magtrabaho bilang call center agent o kaya’y magbayad sa mga ospital para payagang makapagsilbi bilang volunteer. Kuwento nga ni Chris sa akin, isa daw sa aming kamag-aral na graduate ng isang unibersidad sa U-belt ang nagbayad ng P8,000 para makapag-volunteer ng tatlong buwan sa isang ospital pang-militar sa Quezon City. Totoo nga bang may oversupply na ng nurses sa bansa?
Mas malaki ang ratio ng nurses sa Pilipinas kumpara sa ating mga karatig bansa
Ayon sa 2011 Philippine country health profile na inilathala ng World Health Organization (WHO)*, sa bawat 10000 Pilipino ay may 60 na nurse o midwife. Ito ay higit na mataas kaysa sa regional average na 20.3. Mas mababa naman ang bilang ng mga physicians sa bansa (11.5) kaysa sa mga kapitbahay nito a rehiyon (14.5). Hindi nga ba’t may mga doctor tayo na muling nag-aaral para maging nurse? Base sa klasipikasyon ng WHO, ang Pilipinas ay nasa Western Pacific Region. Sa parehong factsheet, nabanggit na halos 40% ng mga panganganak sa bansa ang hindi nagagabayan ng isang skilled health personnel.
Halos 40% ng mga panganganak sa bansa ang hindi nagagabayan ng isang skilled health personnel.
Kung may oversupply nga ng nurses sa bansa, bakit nakapalaking bahagdan pa rin ng ating populasyon ang walang access sa kalidad na serbisyo medikal? Lumalabas na hindi well-distributed sa Pilipinas ang mga nurses. Marami sa kanila ang nandito sa Kamaynilaan habang ang mga nasa malalayong lalawigan ay matinding nangangailangan ng atensyong medikal. Hangga’t hindi nasosolusyunan ang problemang ito, patuloy na mangingibabaw ang nosyong may kalabisan nga sa bilang ng mga nars sa bansa. At si Chris naman, isang taon pagkatapos niyang grumadweyt sa kolehiyo, ay patuloy pa ring naghahanap ng kanyang unang trabaho.
Sanggunian:
abs-cbnNEWS.com. PRC: 29,711 new nurses. http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/exam-results/02/19/11/prc-29711-new-nurses. Article dated February 20, 2011, retrieved June 9, 2011.
Cimatu, Frank. Health secretary tells students: Avoid nursing. http://www.inquirer.net/specialfeatures/nursingmatters/view.php?db=1&article=20110511-335809. Article dated May 11, 2011, retrieved June 9, 2011.
World Health Organization. Philippines – country health profile. http://www.who.int/gho/countries/phl.pdf. Last updated April 4, 2011.
Saudization means fewer overseas work opportunities for Filipinos
22 07 2011by Mark Pere Madrona
(This blog has been published in DefinitelyFilipino.com last August 11: http://definitelyfilipino.com/blog/2011/08/11/saudization-means-fewer-overseas-work-opportunities-for-filipinos/)
Through the years, much has been written about the misfortunes that plagued overseas Filipino workers. Countless OFWs have been abused physically and sexually. Many were forced to work in extremely inhumane circumstances under cruel employers (who probably regard their workers as a material possession). For sure, maltreatment of OFWs happen anywhere in the world, but the stories of abuse coming from those who worked in Middle Eastern nations are more common – and more disturbing[1]. Nevertheless, nothing can stop Filipinos from seeking overseas employment.
With over a million Filipinos currently employed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia[2], the recently implemented Nitaqat system (or “Saudization” of the work force) is certainly not good news for the Philippine economy. Our nation’s labor export policy has been in place for over three decades now, having been initiated by then President Ferdinand Marcos[3]. This scheme has mitigated the country’s perpetual unemployment problem. According to the latest labor figures, there are 11.3 million Filipinos who are unemployed[4]. OFWs had also kept the economy afloat through the billions of dollars in cash remittance they’ve sent back home annually[5].
The realities cannot be denied. Even those who have graduated with honors from the Philippines’ best universities are having a hard time finding a job. Many eventually settle for the first job offer that comes their way – never mind if the compensation package is not at all attractive (or if the work has nothing to do with what one has specialized in). As economists always point out, underemployment is preferable to unemployment. It is also a fact that salaries earned by those who opt to work locally pale in comparison to what one can possibly earn in other countries.
Contrary to insinuations that the Saudization policy was implemented merely as a revenge for the recent investigations conducted by the Philippine Congress regarding the abuse of OFWs in the Middle East, the scheme was actually put into place because the oil kingdom is also experiencing worsening unemployment. Arab News reported last month that as much as 10% of the entire population does not have jobs. Among females, unemployment could be as high as 30%, the paper added[6].
The recently implemented “Saudization” of the work force is certainly not good news for the Philippines.
The Saudi government appears all set to implement the said policy strictly, giving companies just a few months to increase the number of Saudis in their workforce, lest they be dealt with “punitive measures.” The government of KSA has set a fixed percentage of Saudi employees depending on the industry. “Red” companies, for instance, are also not allowed to renew work visas for their foreign employees. Thus, OFWs who initially planned to have a brief vacation to the Philippines will probably no longer be allowed to come back.
With the global financial crisis still lingering and with no end in sight, the job security of people who work overseas are in jeopardy. For example, since the unemployment in America remains high at 9.2% (or anout 14 million Americans)[7], the government has made it harder for immigrants (whether legitimate or undocumented) to find work. American politicians, meanwhile, never fail to demonize in their speeches companies who outsource their operations overseas. Americans, after all, always rail about people who “take” away their jobs.
Given these realities, it is totally understandable for affluent nations to prioritize their own people when it comes to giving jobs. Labor export-dependent countries like the Philippines have no other option but to start adapting to this unfavorable situation. Reliance on foreign countries to solve a nation’s unemployment woes is not sustainable. This cannot go on forever.
[1] Robles, Raissa. Saudis consider maids as part of their furniture. (Personal blog). http://raissarobles.com/2011/07/03/saudis-consider-maids-as-part-of-their-furniture-a-labor-official-once-told-me/
[2] _____________. Commission on Filipinos Overseas. Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos. Philippine Overseas Employment Agency website (http://www.poea.gov.ph/stats/Stock%20Estmate%202009.pdf). Retrieved July 21, 2011.
[3] O’Neil, Kevin. Labor Export as Government Policy: The Case of the Philippines. Migration Policy Institute website. http://www.migrationinformation.org/feature/display.cfm?ID=191. Retrieved March 14, 2011.
[4] ________. SWS: Unemployment up, now affects 11.3M Filipinos. GMA News Online. http://www.gmanews.tv/story/221384/nation/sws-unemployment-up-now-affects-113m-pinoys. Retrieved May 29, 2011. (Report published May 23, 2011)
[5] Olchondra, Riza. “Remittances to fuel economic growth.” Philippine Daily Inquirer website. http://archive.inquirer.net/view.php?db=1&story_id=314828. Retrieved March 14, 2011.
[6] _______. Labor Ministry outlines Saudization percentage. Arab News. http://www.arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article454198.ece. Accessed July 20, 2011.
[7] _______. Employment Situation Summary. United States Bureau of Labor Statistics. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm. Accessed July 21, 2011.
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Tags: labor export policy, labor issues, news, overseas filipino workers, philippines, saudi arabia, saudization, unemployment
Categories : commentary, filipino nurses, health care industry, journalism, philippines, women's rights