ACTS-OFW party-list said the number of Filipino nurses taking the test for the first time "is considered a good indicator as to how many of them are trying to enter the profession in America."
Edd Gumban
More than 10K Filipino nurses took test for US license in 2018, ACTS-OFW says
(philstar.com) - February 5, 2019 - 10:41am
MANILA, Philippines — More than 10,000 Filipino nurses took the US licensure examination for the first time in 2018, making up the bulk of test takers.
According to a release by ACTS-OFW party-list, 10,302 Filipinos took the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX), up from 7,791 first-time test takers in 2017.
In contrast, 1,232 Indians, 1,017 Puerto Ricans, 783 South Koreans and 601 Nigerians took the NCLEX for the first time in 2018, Rep. Aniceto Bertiz III said. Puerto Ricans are US citizens.
The US National Council of State Boards of Nursing Inc. administers the NCLEX to license registered nurses and practical nurses. Taking the test in the Philippines through the Perasin VUE center in Makati costs $200 (P10,500), ACTS-OFW said.
The party-list said the number of Filipino nurses taking the test for the first time "is considered a good indicator as to how many of them are trying to enter the profession in America."
Bertiz said: "There's no question many Filipino nurses looking for greener pasture overseas prefer to work and live in America, mainly due to the superior hourly pay, plus our attachment to the Western culture." 
Bertiz, whose LinkedIn profile lists him as the president and CEO of recruitment agency Global Asia Alliance Consultant Inc. and the spokesperson of the OFW Advocates Coalition, said nurses are not covered by the US Department of Homeland Security's yearlong ban on temporary work visas for Filipinos.
"Filipino nurses entering America through the sponsorship of their prospective US employers apply for and are issued a separate entry permit – the H-1B visa," Bertiz said.
The party-list said it expects the demand for Filipino nurses in America to steadily increase in the years ahead.
"America's nursing workforce is growing old, and they are not producing new nurses fast enough, mainly because they lack teaching staff. In fact, US schools are turning away many would-be nursing students due to the shortage of qualified instructors," Bertiz said.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more