Friday, August 17, 2007 Change in work habits of Pinoy nurses causes slump in demand
THE decline in the demand for Filipino nurses abroad is caused more by a change in the working attitude of the latest batch of nursing professionals rather than the board exam cheating controversy.
“Nurses in the Philippines now are no longer of the same quality as the nurses five to 10 years back,” said Dr. Henry Seno, president of the American Dream Review Institute Inc. (Amdream).
He said 40 percent of Filipino nurses in the United States, despite receiving an average salary of $8,000 to $10,000 a month, “do not show up for work.”
“They literally do not report to the hospitals, especially those with immigrant status. Those who report act as if they are not there because they’re busy doing other things,” he said in a press conference yesterday at the Casino Español de Cebu.
While there are “hardworking” nurses, many of them lack the hands-on experience and a good grasp of educational background which should have been provided by the academe, he said.
“There are more nursing schools now and so many nursing graduates. They (schools) have become mere diploma mills,” said Seno.
This negative scenario has caused hospitals and clinics in the United States to recruit more nurses from India, Korea and China, he said.
Job fairs conducted by foreign hospitals and recruitment agencies were common in the last three years but due to the “deteriorating quality” of nurses today, US hospitals have become apprehensive in their choice of nursing imports, he said.
A “more depressing fact,” Seno added, is that US hospitals were “duped” by local recruitment offices that take advantage of the hospitals’ immediate need for nurses and send people who are not qualified or do not have licenses.
Answering the call to improve the country’s nursing graduates, Seno introduced the Amdream review center in 2000. The review center specializes in online reviews, particularly in preparation for the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurse (NCLEX).
The two-month intensive review covers language training, audiovisual presentations, lectures and simulated exams, which are similar to the actual NCLEX test. Results of the exam will determine the student’s strengths and areas for improvement.
As of December 2006, Amdream’s passing rate during the NCLEX exam was at 83 percent, he said. (MMM)
