WHO: RP must address exodus of health professionals

The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed yesterday that while the exodus of medical professionals from the Philippines has long been a problem, the rate at which they are leaving the country seems to have accelerated.

"Particularly the fact that some medical doctors are shifting to nursing schools with the prospect of exporting themselves as nurses in other countries. So that’s the new problem or the new element of this migration of health workers," WHO country representative Dr. Jean Marc Olive said.

He noted that the migration of doctors and nurses has not only taken its toll on health facilities but also on medical education because even teachers have been lured into leaving.

"In the long run, the quality of studies will also be diminished. Now we start to see hospitals in the district of the provinces not run by a doctor," Olive said.

He acknowledged that migration is "a very difficult issue because you cannot restrict movement of people" and that there is no "magical" solution because "there are too many things linked."

"People have to talk about it and try to look for a solution," Olive said.

The migration of medical professionals to developed countries is also a problem in countries such as Jamaica, where "they had whole year of nursing school, already booked in advance and recruited in institutions in the United States or Canada."

Earlier this month, the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) predicted the country’s health care system would collapse in two to three years because of the continued exodus of doctors and nurses abroad.

The AHW estimates that 5,000 doctors have already left to work as nurses abroad while 4,000 others are enrolled in nursing schools.

The group also revealed that nine district hospitals have already closed down because of the lack of doctors and nurses while many community health centers are unmanned.

A medical school in Angeles City, Pampanga has shut down because not enough students are enrolling to become doctors, the AHW said.

Olive refused to comment on the AHW’s prediction but admitted that the demand for health workers abroad is bound to continue for decades.

He said the United States may still need one million nurses in the next 15 years while Canada and Europe will require hundreds of thousands.

Olive proposed that countries hiring foreign health workers should give "some kind of remuneration" to the nations sending them "because people have been trained in the country and this costs money. There should be retribution from the country receiving the medical OFWs," or overseas Filipino workers. — Sheila Crisostomo