FINLAND Helsinki University Central Hospital hit by nurse shortage Public health care hopes economic slump will attract nurses from private sector

She notes that by 2020, around 3,000 of the nurses at the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District will retire. All of the foreign nurses being recruited for work in Finland are trained nurses, and have experience in working abroad. The Finnish language will be the biggest problem. When they arrive in Finland, the nurses will have studied Finnish for nine months.

House bill would protect fresh nursing grads Philippine Inquirer 3/31/09

A lawmaker is seeking to stop the practice of some hospitals from demanding nursing graduates pay for training to let them get the work experience necessary to qualify for jobs abroad.
He said many nursing graduates had ended up in jobs outside their field. They now work in call centers, retail stores and non-professional positions.
Even those who managed to go abroad had not always worked as nurses with some ending up as caregivers, dental assistants and nursing aides, he said.

Recruiter identifies most 'unemployable' nursing and hrm graduates Philippine Star 4/4/09

A top labor recruiter identified yesterday nurses and hotel workers as the most “unemployable” or those likely to end up jobless. Recruitment leader Lito Soriano said the country is producing too many nursing and tourism graduates but unqualified to be hired abroad.

30% of RP’s nursing schools are now below par, face sanctions from regulation commission Philippine Nurse blog

An official of the board of nursing of the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) said some 30 percent of the 460 nursing schools all over the country are performing below expectations and are now subject to visits and review by the regulatory agency.

More strict nursing entrance exams eyed Philippine Star 4/23/09

CEBU, Philippines – The Association of Deans of the Philippine Colleges of Nursing-Cebu Chapter is asking nursing schools to be more strict in the screening of their students who want to take the course. This, according to them, is one way of uplifting the quality of nursing education in the country, specifically here in Cebu.
The English proficiency is said to be very important in their profession since excellent communication skills is a must in dealing with people, most especially English-speaking patients and or clients. The attitude exam would determine if they have the right amount of patience needed in their job.

Nursing dreams Blog

The process goes like this: (1) finish BS Nursing, (2) take the local board exams, (3) get a work experience here in the Philippines, (4) pass those exams that the US government requires foreign nurses to take, (5) go to an employment agency to help you get a job in the “States,” (6) save a lot of money for plane fare, apartment, and other expenses. So, as you can see, ladies and gentlemen, becoming a nurse in the “States,” or anywhere abroad, is rather a complicated process that entails a lot of money—the No. 1 thing that I lack the most. So a BS Nursing degree does not even get you halfway the entire process.

Pinoy nurses seeking US jobs down 10.5% Philippine Star 4/26/09

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) yesterday said the number of Filipino nurses who have sought employment in the United States during the first quarter of 2009 has gone down by 10.5 percent.

5,000 public nurses sought; 11,000 apply Philippine Inquirer 4/1/09

5,000 public nurses sought; 11,000 apply Philippine Inquirer 4/1/09

As jobs become scarce, more than 11,000 nurses have scrambled to gain a slot in the government’s emergency employment program for 5,000 nurses in the countryside, officials said Tuesday.

“More than 11,000 applied,” Labor Undersecretary Lily Pineda said. “But we expected more because there were close to 40,000 new board passers.”

Gordon laments the lack of public school nurses Press release 4/13/09

Independent Senator Richard J. Gordon today lamented the lingering shortage of nurses and nursing aides in the more than 43,000 public schools across the country despite the huge volume of nursing students graduating annually.

Gordon said he finds it very ironic that while the country prides itself of producing the best graduates of medical and other health-related courses, the poor public school pupils hardly benefit from adequate medical attention.

Registered Nurses - Australian Recruiting Group - Philippines Jobs 4/13/09

Australian Health and Education Recruiting are offering a full Australian based training program for Philippines nurses for the Queensland Nursing Council’s challenge test.

Filipinos welcome Swiss Parliament proposal to hire Pinoy nurses ... blog 4/15/09

Language as a requirement But the nurses said newcomers would have to learn the local language in Switzerland, which has German, French, and Italian-speaking cantons, and even Swiss Reto-Romanish parts.

An estimated 15,000 Filipinos live and work in Switzerland, most of them in the main cities of Zürich, Geneva, Basel and Bern. There is a Philippine Embassy in Bern and a consulate in Geneva, although there is also an honorary Consul-General based in Basel.

Nurses make the grade (in Canada nursing exam) PhilNurse 4/15/09

In February 2009, 68 Filipino nurses working in the Saskatoon area took the Canadian Registered Nurse Examination. Of those, 57 passed and 11 failed. That’s an 84 per cent pass rate, almost unheard of for internationally trained nurses writing the exam for the first time, according to Donna Brunskill, executive director of the Saskatchewan Registered Nurses’ Association.

The national pass rate for nurses who are trained outside of Canada and who write the exam for the first time is around 60 per cent, she says. Historically, nurses trained in the Philippines have had a 43 per cent pass rate. The provincial pass rate for the Filipino nurses who wrote the exam in February was 81 per cent while 97 per cent of those who graduated from the Saskatchewan nursing education program passed the exam. The nurses learned of their results in mid-March.

Nurses urged to consider ME, UK instead of US for work abroad Philippine newsrelease 4/17/09

Cebu City (17 April) -- New nurses are advised not to limit their job hunting abroad to the United States as opportunities for healthcare professionals are abundant in other countries like the Middle East and the United Kingdom.

Yolanda Arugay, a member of the Board of Nursing (BON) from the Professional Regulations Commission (PRC) gave this advice to the almost 40,000 new nurses who will take their oath as professionals.

The US is presently suffering from a retrogression which has affected the deployment of nurses wanting to work there, Arugay said.

‘Many nurses, few jobs’ Cebu Daily News 04/16/2009

The skills of more than 1,000 nurses in Cebu are not being utilized because medical facilities locally or abroad cannot accommodate or afford them.

Dr. Ronald Fermo, regional governor of the Philippine Nurses Association (PNA) – Cebu Chapter, said that due to the decline in the demand of nurses abroad and the inability of local hospitals to pay for nursing staff, nurses end up working as call center agents or become staff at hotels, shopping malls or offices.

USA Jobs Scarce, Even for Nurses Economic Crisis Freezes Field Once Short of Workers Washington Post 4/09

With some nurses postponing retirement and others resuming their careers for financial reasons, many hospitals across the region and the nation say they have few, if any, openings. After more than a decade when hospitals struggled to maintain sufficient staffing and when nurses could have their pick of jobs, the want ads have virtually disappeared, and only acute-care and emergency-room nurses remain in great demand.

Escudero said the CHED should instead weed out nursing diploma mills Visayan Daily Star 3/23/09

Escudero said the CHED should instead weed out nursing diploma mills that have proliferated due to the increase in the number of students wanting to take up nursing. He also called for stricter supervision of nursing review centers.

Based on a report done by CHED and the Professional Regulatory Commission, only 12 out of the top 175 nursing schools in the country had a passing rate of 90 percent or higher during the period 2000-2004.

Reforms to do away with nursing review centers Manila Standard February 13, 2009

THE Commission on Higher Education is revising the nursing curriculum to do away with the services of review centers, which have mushroomed to a little more than 500 nationwide.

Problems of Filipino Nurses 3/23/09

But what is happening to all the Filipino nurses nowadays? After graduated and took up the Nursing Board Exam, what should be the next step? And that is to find a job. According to the statistic, there are approximately 200,000 graduates of nurses every year in the Philippines but only 2,500 are getting the right job for it. Let us just do some percentage here; approximately there is only 1.25% from graduates who gets a job?

What will happen to those who remain jobless? Why does the government keeps on accepting enrollees to take up nursing courses from different universities if they know for a fact that Filipino nurses are overly populated. Are there any quotas for it? What are they aiming for? Maybe, to human export again these professionals to become a “bagong bayani” or OFW (Overseas Filipino Workers)?

Accord sought with countries recruiting Filipino nurses blog 3/23/09

Former Health Secretary Dr. Jaime Galvez Tan has urged the government to ensure a win-win bilateral agreement with countries who take interest in hiring Filipino health professionals.

In the country’s agreement with Canada’s Saskatchewan province and Finland, Tan said for every 10 nurses, the importing country has agreed to improve the nursing center and for one Filipino nurse hired, three more nurses will be educated. Joint researches, linkages and graduate scholarships with their universities for improved research were also included in the agreement.

RN contract trap (part 2) Cebu Sunstar 3/23/09

For many, the working conditions are not as promised. They were told that they would be working at a specific hospital in a safe environment, only to find out that the position is in a different hospital, in unsafe neighborhoods or even in completely different cities and states than promised. Others find that the “agency” or employer has no work for them. They wait several weeks or even several months without receiving a pay check or full time work hours

For ‘fooling’ nurses, agency faces raps Cebu Sunstar 3/23/09

THREE employees from a defunct agency are now facing a syndicated illegal recruitment case for duping nurses into paying more than P500,000 for a job in the United Kingdom (UK).

E. Visayas awaits nurses under jobs program Philippine Inquirer 3/18/09

Over 500 registered nurses, including those who recently passed licensure tests, would land a job in Eastern Visayas under the national government’s Project Nurses Assigned in Rural Service (Nars).

Project Nars is designed to mobilize 10,000 unemployed registered nurses as “warriors for wellness” to 1,000 of the poorest towns in the country to improve the delivery of health care services for six months, according to Department of Health (DOH) assistant regional director Dr. Minerva Molon.

The nurses will initiate primary health, school nutrition, and maternal health programs; first line diagnosis; inform communities about water sanitation practices and also do health surveillance; and immunize children and mothers.

Envoy: UK needs more health workers Cebu Freeman 3/19/09

Aside from healthcare workers, which include nurses, and caregivers, Beckingham said demand for hospitality workers, and entertainers are also strong. This would mean, job opportunities for hotel workers, singers, musicians are growing, although UK is not spared from the global economic slowdown.

What concerns him though is the declining demand for seafarers, and shipping crew demand is getting thinner.

JPEPA secures Japan jobs Manila Times 2/28/09

Nurses, caregivers to get first crack President Gloria Arroyo announced on Friday that Filipino health workers could now work in Japan starting April through the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement

UK restricts visa issuances for nurses Manila Standard Today 2/28/09

THE British Embassy will restrict the number of student visa applications it will process daily because it is clogged with 47,000 applications, many filed by Filipino nurses taking advantage of the National Vocation Qualification program.

Manila signs MOA with 11 nursing schools Philippine Star March 12, 2009

MANILA, Philippines -- Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim today signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with heads of 11 nursing schools in the city that plan to send their nurses to train at a government hospital here. ....now why can't the universities do this themselves here in Cebu to make themselves really part of the educational process???

Obama opposes bringing nurses from overseas 3/16/09 USA

"The notion that we would have to import nurses makes absolutely no sense," Obama told a gathering of health experts and lawmakers at a White House meeting on health care reforms. Last week, a legislation was introduced in the US Congress to create a special category of nursing visas, which would facilitate much faster and easier brining of trained nurses from Asian countries like India.

Nurse in the Philippines|quantity vs the quality of care 2/29/09

Many college and universities now a day’s offers nursing courses despite of declining quality of nurse in the Philippines, many schools opened just because of the global demands for nurses. Since our government cannot sustain the needs of employment for nurses, lots of nursing graduates are jobless. But the crucial part of outgrowing numbers of nurses is the declining quality of nursing care.

The nursing education now a day is not satisfactory in quality analogous to the previous times that the country had produced top quality nurses in the Philippines. Lots of nursing student every year graduates their chosen field, however the passing rate of the Philippine nursing licensure exams for the past eight years falls below fifty percent, compares to the graduates of year 90’s, it declines for so many reasons: lack of quality educators, outnumber students-educators ratio, less support coming from the government and lack of motivation to become fully pledge nurses which is the most important thing, the quantity exceeds the quality of nursing care.

WANTED 200 NURSES FOR SINGAPORE Cebu Sunstar Classified 3/15/09

FOR THESE POSITIONS CONTACT EMERALD INTERNATIONAL MANPOWER SERVICE CEBU 032 254 3981 MOBILE 0927 6267 976 emerald08@pldtvibe.net

NEEDED NURSE HOTEL CEBU Cebu Sunstar Clasified 3/8/09

TO APPLY EMAIL RESUME TO HR@microtel.ph or mactan@microtel.ph

NOWHERE TO TRAIN the Nurses!! The Philippine Star 09/08/08

450,000 nursing graduates have no great hope for 1-3 years of work experience needed before applying for overseas jobs at present!

....the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) reported that around 400,000 licensed nurses could not find employment locally as there are only around 60,000 nursing jobs available in the country. (click the title to read the complete article)

Message of false hopes I think the good commissioner PRC commissioner Ruth Padilla is missing a major point in the issue, and is sending a dangerous message to thousands of nursing hopefuls currently enrolled or about to enroll in nursing schools.

A crucial factor Padilla left out or failed to clarify is that nurses being sought after by such countries are those armed with a significant number of years of hospital and clinical experience. In contrast, majority, if not all of the 400,000 jobless nurses mentioned by the PRC are those who belong to the recent batches of licensure examination passers who are armed with nursing license and – nothing else! This is like training soldiers and sending them to battle without guns.

Nowhere to go In fact, several years of hospital experience alone isn’t good enough for foreign employers. Many if not all require a nurse to have warned her clinical experience in modern, tertiary hospitals. In Metro Manila, we only have a handful of modern tertiary hospitals. And the situation is worse in the provinces.

An innovative way employed before by rookie nurses in a bid to earn actual clinical experience was to apply as volunteer nurses. The ploy apparently was picked up by succeeding batches of newly-licensed nurses which resulted in a backlog even in the pplication for volunteer nurses.

Some newly licensed nurses lamented that even government hospitals are no longer interested in accepting volunteer nurses due to lack of qualified nurse-instructors and supervisors to look after the trainees and volunteers. Woe! Even for free, thousands of nurses cannot get their hands wet with actual hospital work.

With dreams dying, Filipino nurses ponder options, set new directions

Philippine Star 11/13/08

Sadly, after spending hundreds of thousands of pesos for their education and countless moments of difficulties, their hopes and dreams are either dying or in need of immediate resuscitation or better still, drastic redirection. Scores are considering setting aside for the long-term, if not totally abandoning, their plans of working in local hospitals due to the terrible lack of employment opportunities amid the ironic reported increasing global demand for their services. Thousands of registered nurses have joined under-board engineers, accountants, and architects who have flocked to call centers, aside from those who have opted to become medical transcriptionists or managers of fast-food chains or run family business. (Read complete article by clicking title)

UK restricts visa issuances for nurses Manila Standard Today 2/28/09

THE British Embassy will restrict the number of student visa applications it will process daily because it is clogged with 47,000 applications, many filed by Filipino nurses taking advantage of the National Vocation Qualification program.

Glut of Filipino nurses because Government & Universities don't have 1-3 working experience slots in country hospitals Manila Times 3/7/09

There is now a glut of unemployed nurses because they cannot find work abroad despite the big demand for them in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia for lacking the required training and experience. Many have expressed willingness to pay for “internship” in the country’s top hospitals but there is simply no room for them.

The government’s current program of employing nurses in clinics and hospitals in the rural areas cannot provide them with the training in critical skills required by foreign hospitals. It becomes the duty of the Department of Health to arrange with some modern hospitals for the special training of these nurses, especially in highly technical work in operating rooms and intensive care units.

6 Saudi hospitals need 4,000 workers Philippine Star 3/9/09

MANILA, Philippines - Six of the largest military hospitals in Saudi Arabia are in need of more than 4,000 healthcare professionals, technicians and medical personnel, making it the biggest market for overseas Filipino workers, a recruitment leader said yesterday.

The RN contract trap Cebu Sunstar 3/9/09

The most common contractual clause that wreaks havoc on an immigrating RN’s life is the breach of contract damages clause. Most contracts typically require the RN to work for a specific number of years and failure to do so triggers the damages clause. The damages can range from $15,00 to $50,000!

Growing number of nursing students quality is doubted... Cebu Sunstar 3/9/09

THE Philippines’ nursing course has become suspect among countries known to have provided employment to Filipino nursing professionals. The sheer number of nursing students, growing from 30,000 in 2004 to 450,000 this year, seems too much. Countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand doubt the qualifications and the quality of the training programs in place.

In New Zealand, for instance, its Nursing Council has made it impossible for second coursers-–doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc.--to get approval for their applications. The excuse is that it cannot accept nurses who have obtained their degrees for less than four years.

SAUDIA ARABIA PRIVATE AND STAFF NURSES WANTED Cebu Sunstar classified 3/1/09

email almustaqbal_international@yahoo.com phone 032 256 2548

STAFF NURSES WANTED Saudi Arabia Cebu Sunstar 3/1/09 classified

phone 032 253 4506 look for Ms Edna de Garcia

Occupational Therapists and Physical Therapists USA Sunstar Sunday February 22, 2009 to apply email resumes to reliable_cebu@yahoo.com.ph

Medical Assistant, Cebu to apply phone or text 0917 513 5542 Sunstar Sunday February 22, 2009

Nursing licensure exam result dismal–PNA Manila Times 2/24/09

“I am not happy with the board exams result. The mortality rate should not be that big,” said the Philippine Nursing Association (PNA) Inc. President Teresita Barcelo on Monday. Barcelo said the government has to implement measures to improve the quality of nursing education after expressing concern over the dismal result of the recent nursing licensure exam. Part of the reform is an enhanced curriculum that will ensure that nursing students get quality education in their chosen field, Barcelo added.

The steep decline in the number of those who passed the board exams this month was also observed with some concern by former PNA President Dr. Leah Primitiva Samaco-Paquiz. “During our time, the passing rate was about 80 percent,” Samaco-Paquis said, noting that the decline started way back in the 1970s when the Marcos administration “rationalized” the nursing curriculum and changed the five-year course offering to the current four years.

Statins: The new wonder drugs Philippine Star 2/24/09

Statins might just prove to be real miracle drugs. They do a great job at lowering cholesterol, and they also appear to have a multitude of other medical benefits. They work by altering the metabolism of cholesterol, a complex fat that the body needs for many purposes. For example, cholesterol forms a vital component of cell membranes and nerve sheaths; it forms the basis of sex hormones; and it enables bile acids to process the food we eat. Most of the body’s cholesterol is produced by liver cells, and most of the rest comes from the food we eat.

Six different statins are currently available by prescription: atorvastatin (Lipitor), fluvastatin (Lescol), lovastatin (Lovastatin), pravastatin (Lipostat), rosovastatin (Crestor), and simvastatin (Zocor). Although chemically they are nearly identical, small differences in their molecular structure are in some cases responsible for properties specific to one or two statins. In addition to lowering the risk of heart attacks and strokes by reducing cholesterol, these wonder drugs can do many other things:

Statins may prevent stroke, Statins reduce deaths from respiratory diseases, Statins ameliorate heart failure, Statins help protect against heart attack, Statins may reverse coronary artery disease, Statins may prevent Alzheimer’s

Nursing program turns away students in USA

Faculty shortage in USA college nursing programs According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, 27,771 qualified applicants were turned away from 406 entry-level baccalaureate nursing programs in 2008.

Health workers for Japan

THE Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) will send 1,000 caregivers and nurses to Japan in the next two years.

The deployment of caregivers and nurses is part of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa) and will be done through the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

Application for NARS program starts Friday, February 20
Posted on Thursday, February 19, 2009

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) today said the application of unemployed nurses who want to be hired and gain the necessary work experience under the NARS program starts today, Friday, Feb. 20, 2009.

Labor and Employment Secretary Marianito D. Roque said interested nurses may file their application at the nearest DOLE regional office, or online at http//www.nars.dole.gov.ph where application forms can be downloaded.

Roque said the DOLE would entertain applications and conduct selection of nurses for deployment to rural areas until March 22, 2009, adding an initial 5,000 nurse-trainees would be selected for deployment beginning April 1,2009. While on training, the nurses would receive a minimum stipend/allowance of P8,000.00 per month.

DOLE opens website on NARS program Philippine Star Updated February 22, 2009

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) opened a website where unemployed nurses can apply for a job, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque yesterday said.

The website www.nars.gov.dole.ph contains pertinent information about the
government’s newest program called “Nurses Assigned in Rural Areas,” and application forms that interested nurses can fill up or download.

November 2008 Nursing Board Exam Results Top Performing Schools

November 2008 Nursing Board Exam Results Top Performing Schools

NO.PASSED/PERCENTAGE PASSED

1. TRINITY UNIVERSITY OF ASIA (TRINITY-Q.C.) 339 338 99.00 %
1. UNIVERSITY OF THE EAST RAMON MAGSAYSAY MEM. MEDICAL CTR. 271 269 99.00 %
2. UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS 466 458 98.00 %
2. SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY 418 409 98.00 %
2. CEBU NORMAL UNIVERSITY (CEBU STATE COLLEGE) 203 199 98.00 %
2. CHINESE GENERAL HOSPITAL COLLEGE OF NURSING & LIBERAL ARTS 176 173 98.00 %
2. WEST VISAYAS STATE UNIVERSITY – LA PAZ 169 166 98.00 %
2. SAINT PAUL UNIVERSITY – DUMAGUETE 129 126 98.00 %
3. DE LA SALLE UNIVERSITY – DASMARIÑAS HEALTH SCIENCE CAMPUS 309 296 96.00%

WITH 30-99 EXAMINEES

RANK SCHOOL/TOTAL NO. OF EXAM/TOTAL NO.PASSED/PERCENTAGE PASSED

1. SAINT PAUL UNIVERSITY – ILOILO 86 86 100.00 %
1. UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES MANILA 73 73 100.00 %
1. UNIVERSITY OF SAN JOSE RECOLETOS 46 46 100.00 %
1. P.C.U.–MARY JOHNSTON COLLEGE OF NURSING 36 36 100.00 %
2. MINDANAO STATE UNIVERSITY – MARAWI CITY 90 87 97.00 %
3. SAINT PAUL UNIVERSITY -MANILA 80 76 95.00 %

39,455 pass nursing examination

PRC said 39,455 or 44.51 percent of the 88,649 who took the November 2008 Nursing Licensure Examination (NLE) passed the grueling two-day test. The 2009 passing rate was slightly higher than the 43.1 percent passing rate in the last licensure examination held in June 2008, when 27,765 out of the 64,456 passed the examinations. Click the links below according to the last name you want to search

• NURSE LICENSURE EXAMINATION PASSERS (AAL - CON )

• NURSE LICENSURE EXAMINATION PASSERS (COO - JUT)

• NURSE LICENSURE EXAMINATION PASSERS (KAB - POY)

• NURSE LICENSURE EXAMINATION PASSERS (PRA - ZWE )

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2 from Cebu schools among top passers in nursing exam

CEBU, Philippines - A 38-year-old municipal councilor from Hilongos Leyte, who took up her nursing studies at Cebu Normal University (CNU), placed 5th in the November 2008 Licensure Examination, while another student from the University of San Carlos places 9th.

Unemployed Filipino nurses may start applying for govt’s NARS program

MANILA, Philippines - Despite criticisms that the Nurses Assigned in Rural Service (NARS) program won’t make Filipino nurses attractive overseas, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has said that those interested may start applying starting