Growing demand for immigrant nurses in the west
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Farhad Khan
IT is estimated there are 2.2 to 3.0 million working nurses averaging 47 years old in the US, for example. The annual vacancy rate is approximately 9.0 per cent. The US anticipates a shortage of 800,000 nurses by 2050. According to more dramatic estimates there will perhaps be 1.0 million vacancies by 2012 (US Bureau of Labor Statistics).
In the past, the US would need a few thousand foreign-trained nurses in a given year. In 2001 the US recruited 40,000 nurses from overseas. The demand is likely to grow for several decades. There is a debate in the US and Europe on whether or not to lower the restrictions on immigrant nurses who qualify to fill these vacancies.
Incentives to work in the west are high. For example, the Filipino nurses who make approximately $200 USD per month in the Philippines can earn between $50,000 USD and $100,000 in the US. The Filipino nurses send a very large amount of money home every year.
The pay is not the only factor. The working conditions are usually much better in the US. The quality of nursing in the US requires proper training and experience. The nurses need special training to handle the equipment in use as well.
Foreign-trained nurses who meet the skills and language criteria get preference over the immigrants lacking these skills. Due to shortage of trained nurses, older nurses will continue to get employment. The foreign-born trained category is likely to grow by 15 per a year in the US.
Interestingly, a larger number of doctors are taking training to become nurses to meet the growing demand. Many doctors consider it desirable to decertify as a doctor to get jobs as nurses. South Korea recently decided to send 10,000 nurses to New York hospitals to meet the shortfall over the next five years. Many nurses are leaving African and Caribbean countries for the United States, Europe and Australia.
Many immigrant nurses who find it difficult to get jobs in the US move to Canada. English proficiency and other competency tests in the US are more rigorous.
IT is estimated there are 2.2 to 3.0 million working nurses averaging 47 years old in the US, for example. The annual vacancy rate is approximately 9.0 per cent. The US anticipates a shortage of 800,000 nurses by 2050. According to more dramatic estimates there will perhaps be 1.0 million vacancies by 2012 (US Bureau of Labor Statistics).
In the past, the US would need a few thousand foreign-trained nurses in a given year. In 2001 the US recruited 40,000 nurses from overseas. The demand is likely to grow for several decades. There is a debate in the US and Europe on whether or not to lower the restrictions on immigrant nurses who qualify to fill these vacancies.
Incentives to work in the west are high. For example, the Filipino nurses who make approximately $200 USD per month in the Philippines can earn between $50,000 USD and $100,000 in the US. The Filipino nurses send a very large amount of money home every year.
The pay is not the only factor. The working conditions are usually much better in the US. The quality of nursing in the US requires proper training and experience. The nurses need special training to handle the equipment in use as well.
Foreign-trained nurses who meet the skills and language criteria get preference over the immigrants lacking these skills. Due to shortage of trained nurses, older nurses will continue to get employment. The foreign-born trained category is likely to grow by 15 per a year in the US.
Interestingly, a larger number of doctors are taking training to become nurses to meet the growing demand. Many doctors consider it desirable to decertify as a doctor to get jobs as nurses. South Korea recently decided to send 10,000 nurses to New York hospitals to meet the shortfall over the next five years. Many nurses are leaving African and Caribbean countries for the United States, Europe and Australia.
Many immigrant nurses who find it difficult to get jobs in the US move to Canada. English proficiency and other competency tests in the US are more rigorous.