Integration to worsen Phl's depleting medical workers

CEBU, Philippines - The Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines expressed concerns that the country might lose a good number of medical professionals once the full ASEAN integrations takes place.

PHAP president Rustico Jimenez said this scenario is not a far-fetched reality if the hospitals in the country will not come up with incentives and higher salary packages for medical professionals including the radiation technologists and medical technologists.   

In the Asean Economic Community, Jimenez said that Filipino professionals will have the choice to practice their professions in other countries within the region, at the same time foreign capitalists will have easier access to put up their investments on hospitals in the Philippines.

With the absence of government support, Jimenez said private hospitals, which comprise majority of the hospital facilities in the country, are now streamlining operational costs to be able to provide higher salary packages, allowances, and other incentives with the hope of encouraging medical professionals to stay and serve in the country.

Despite these efforts, the Philippines is already suffering from the depleting supply of good medical professionals, specifically nurses who are greatly in-demand in other countries.

Jimenez said while there is a good number of nursing graduates and registered nurses in the country, most of them are concentrated in the urban areas, leaving the outskirt provinces short of medical professionals.

Aside from nurses, and medical doctors, radiologic technologists and medical technologists are likewise in demand professions abroad.

Here in the Philippines, RadTEch and MedTech professionals, who's wage bracket is supposedly at least P20 thousand a month are only earning P12 thousand a month in government medical facilities. Jimenez said, "they might as well opt to work at the call center."

The country has a total of 1,800 hospitals, of which 900 are privately managed with 77 thousand bed capacity. For a country with 100 million population, there should be one-bed per one thousand people.

With the shortage of bed capacity and diminishing supply of healthcare professionals, Jimenez hinted that with the ASEAN integration, the Philippines will soon be served by foreign medical doctors and hospitals will be also be operated by foreigners.

Jimenez, along with other top healtcare managers kicked off its three-day 13th Hospital Management Asia (HMA 2014 )conference yesterday at the Radisson Blu Hotel Cebu.

About 831 delegates from 35 countries are now attending the learning conference, which includes a combination of plenary sessions and workshops and demonstrations on up-to-date best hospital management practices. (FREEMAN)