This could be one, if not the worst question a duly registered nurse in the Philippines would have to ask himself.
Given another chance, would you still take up nursing? Or would you rather choose another path?
Personally, NURSING has been my first choice back in college (Journalism ranked #2 on my list). I was never forced nor coerced by my parents or whoever Judas that is to take up the course.
I wholeheartedly choose to take up nursing.
I am proud to say that I have been a registered nurse since 2010, after passing the November 2009 Philippine Nurse Licensure Examination, coined as the "most difficult NLE to date".
It was during that season that the PNLE set new records in its history - with its peak and nadir. Highest in terms of the number of examinees (92, 462) and lowest in terms of passing, 37,527 (39.73%).
However, the December 2011 PNLE grabbed the record when the passing rate was at its all-time low, with 22,760 (33.92%).
Whoa! The numbers are truly overwhelming. But wait, there's more!
On Nursing Statistics
I was kind of on the verge of losing hope of finding statistics on the number of registered nurses and its employment figures in the country.
Matter of fact, I already have this typed in this entry:
As much as I would like to give a statistics on the most recent number of registered nurses in the country, I didn't find any available. I have searched the internet for all possible online sources, but to my dismay, I find none. I even checked the websites of the following government agencies to check if they have any of the information I was looking for:
- Professional Regulation Commission,
- PRC-Board of Nursing,
- Department of Labor and Employment, and
- National Statistics Office
Moreover, I tried to check for sources regarding the unemployment and underemployment of these nurses, but likewise, to no extent, I was also dismayed to find out there is none.
It is indeed saddening that these so-called "regulatory" bodies of the profession and employment in the Philippines, doesn't even have any of these statistics.
It was not until I bumped into a Scribd document of Board of Nursing Chair Hon. Carmecita S. Abaquin's presentation on "Nursing Profession Competitiveness Roadmap" during the Philippine Nurses Association, Inc. 90th Foundation Anniversary, 55th Nurses Week Celebration, 2012 National Annual Convention.
Here is a brief rundown of statistics from the said presentation.
According to the figures from the PRC as of December 2011, there are a total of 733, 020 Registered Nurses in the Philippines.
Among this number, there is an estimated local employment of 67, 202 (2011) and a total of 132, 943 employed nurses overseas (2001-2011). This sums up to 200,145 employed nurses both locally and abroad.Moreover, in 2001-2011, there is an estimated 221,323 unemployed/underemployed nurses in the country. (421,468 board passers minus the total number of employed nurses)
Upon seeing the slides, I cant help but ask myself a number of questions. Why are these data NOT available for public viewing? Are they HIDING it to public scrutiny? Why is it that this is being presented ONLY in a gathering of nurses like the PNA Convention?
Now, enough of the numbers, please...
Anyways, this post isn't really about all these numbers, figures and statistics. This is more of my experiences as both an unemployed and underemployed nurse in the country.
The Experience: Of the Underemployed and Unemployed
Since 2010, despite having attended and taken several post-graduate trainings, not the ones we have now which is more of the volunteer-disguising-post-graduate trainings, I have never been fully employed in any setting where I can use what I have learned back in nursing school, nor have I practiced the profession to its fullest extent which, in the first place, the ultimate reason why one would hurdle the 2-day 500-item long PNLE.
Dictionary.com simply defines unemployed as someone "without remunerative employment; out of work" and underemployed as someone who is "employed at a job that does not fully use one's skills or abilities" or one that is "employed only part-time when one is available for full-time work".
It was back in 2010 when I belonged to the group of the underemployed in the country. It was during the time when I worked for the BPO industry.
Although we now have BPO Nursing, wherein nurses would be profiled for healthcare accounts. Therefore, they would still be able to utilize all their nursing know-hows in terms of patient care and the like, I was on the very opposite side of the road.
I was then a Technical Support Representative attending to customers concerns with regards to their IPTV, CVOIP and HSIA. Did I just sound technical? Okay, let me give you the meanings of these acronyms:
IPTV - Internet Protocol Television, a digital television service that uses the power of Internet Protocol Technology to provide customers with more programming choices and viewing options.
CVOIP - Carrier Voice Over Internet Protocol, a next generation voice communication which provides crystal clear quality calls along with all the traditional features.
HSIA - High Speed Internet Access, an internet service that uses fiber optic technology and computer networking to offer high-speed internet with downstream speeds of up to 3, 6, 12, 18, and 24 Mbps.
Need I say more as to why I was underemployed during that time?
I left the job in 2012 and decided to "practice" the profession. Immediately after resigning, I took several trainings to be still at par, the very least with the fresh graduates, (for those like me who don't do their maths well, I spent a year and a half being a TSR). I took, and made sure to complete my second 3-Day Basic IVT Course (the 1st one, back in 2011, I wasn't able to comply with the 3-3-1 cases for I wasn't able to do my completion. At times, it just sucks to be me!)
I also had a 5-week long Hemodialysis Training for Nurses. The thought of emerging stand-alone hemodialysis centers struck me, hence the reason I took the said training. After finishing the course, I tried submitting my curriculum vitae to these institutions, only to find that there were already a lot who have had the training and is currently on their waiting lists.
Now, I am still active with the Alliance and is currently doing part-time work as a Clinic and Field Nurse in a multispecialty clinic somewhere along the stretch of Quezon Avenue in Quezon City. However, I am still currently trying to get myself a full-time and sustainable job in this field.
On Possible Employment Opportunities
It is indeed undeniable that I am not the only nurse including in the statistics of non-employment. But, no one can deny the fact that there are a lot of avenues where nurses would excel. It just a matter of we, as students back in nursing school were taught that the hospital is the only place we could work in.
I have always believed that being a nurse, one must not confine himself within the four corners of the hospitals. Furthermore, I believe that the "nurse" in you will not be taken out of you if you're not working in a hospital.
Among the other fields a nurse could venture into include:
1. As previously mentioned in this post, nurses in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) nowadays are highly sought after. Accounts such as medical transcription, coding and billing, healthcare secretaries and the likes are very much in demand. Some healthcare BPOs even look for Filipino nurses with an active USRN license. Starting salary for nurses in this field ranges from P14,000-P18,000 and may go up to P40,000.
2. Nurses are also very much in demand in the field of non-government organizations and developmental work. Their passion to serve and meticulousness in detail makes them excellent choices for these NGOs. NGOs give nurses with remuneration that may range from P10,000-P15,000.
3. Educators, be it in the academe, clinical or other areas are also among those wherein nurses excel. I, for one, personally know a nurse who is teaching IELTS in a review center in Makati. According to her, IELTS instructor salary ranges from P14,000 to P20,000 depending on your employer.
Check out this blog post of fellow advocate and PHBS member, Nr. RNdrei on Featured Nurse:Nurse Educator.
4. Private duty nursing (PDN) is also one of the areas where nurses can practice their profession. PDNs care for terminally ill patients and those needing long-term care. PDNs get P800-P1500 per 8-or-12-hour shift.
5. Blogging. Yes, you read it right! Did you know that blogging about health and anything in between can be a good source of income? Ads pay bloggers $50 to as much as $200 per month depending on activity. Yes, you once again read it right! We are talking of dollars here. But, of course you would need to increase your activity and page views. Check out Nr. Hussein's blog for example.
And the list goes on and on.
As you can see, there are truly a lot of fields outside the walls of the hospitals.
If only nurses would know how to utilize their full potential in these fields, surely, the number of unemployment above will definitely go down.
"I am A Filipino Registered Nurse: The Unemployed/Underemployed Experience"
Blogger's Note:
It is just pure coincidence that I am posting this today, May 1st, Labor Day. This post has been, once again, in the "Drafts" for more than a couple of weeks now. It never came to me that I will be finishing this post right in time for Labor Day.
Isang pagpupugay sa mga manggagawang Pilipino!
Isang pagpupugay sa mga Filipino nurses!
Images courtesy of:
www.facebook.com
www.abbaphilippines.com
http://2.bp.blogspot.com
http://www.anexcellentspirit.com
Being A nurse is not easy. This entails a lot of patience and sacrifice.
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