Friday, August 13, 2004 Aboitiz ensures nurses sent abroad regularly
THE Aboitiz Group of companies is investing half a million pesos for a nursing scholarship program that aims to help the country sustain the continuous supply of qualified Filipino nurses both for local hospitals and overseas placement of its subsidiary companies, recruitment and manning agency Aboitiz Jebsen Manpower Solutions Inc. (AJMan) and Aboitiz Group Foundation Inc. (Agfi).
AJMan and Agfi recognized the first batch of nursing scholars—20 senior nursing students from the Southwestern University (SWU) and the Cebu Normal University (CNU)—last Wednesday at the Aboitiz Transport System Corp., formerly WG&A, building.
AJMan vice president Arleen Asuncion said the Aboitiz group chose the Visayas as the focal point for the scholarship program because of the excellent quality of nursing institutions in the region.
“As a Cebuano company, the Aboitiz group has a unique affinity with the Visayas,” she added.
Asuncion is also inviting registered nurses to apply with AJMan for employment at a US-based facility by one of AJMan’s US employers, with a generous and comprehensive compensation benefits package, including free US immigrant visa processing, free US airfare, free review classes and test fees for the US-required examinations and housing and transport subsidy during the first three months. The entry-level salary for nurses in the US is $25-$28 per hour.
Benefits, such as employment placement assistance for the accompanying spouse and school admissions assistance for the children, extend to the nurse’s family as well, she said.
Big demand
Asuncion said the demand for nurses abroad, especially in the US, is increasing. The demand for health care workers, including nurses, in the US is estimated to reach 100,000 by next year.
She said AJMan’s principal in the US prefers Filipino nurses to other nationalities.
“They said Filipino nurses have the innate characteristics of being caring and loving,” Asuncion said.
Aside from nurses, there is also a growing demand for physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech therapists in the US.
Asuncion said AJMan aims to send 50 nurses to the US per year. The first batch of 20 nurses will be sent to California by the end of the year.
She said AGMan also has partners in the Middle East, but the company is still studying the situation in the area to assure the safety of their recruits.
In regard to the scholarship program, Asuncion said the scholarship will be given to students with exemplary academic performance in selected nursing schools in the Visayas, such as SWU and CNU.
The program includes free tuition, related school expenses during the final semester of their last year in nursing school, reimbursement of review classes and test fees for examinations required to be able to work in the US. JBN
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