5,320 Filipino Nurses Sought US Jobs in 2015
By: InterAksyon.com
January 24, 2016 11:58 AM
MANILA – A total of 5,320 Philippine-educated nurses took the US National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) in 2015, in the hopes of practicing their profession in America, Cebu Rep. Gerald Anthony Gullas Jr. said in a news release Sunday.
“The number is up 16 percent compared to the 4,580 Filipino nurses who took the NCLEX for the first time, excluding repeaters, in 2014,” Gullas, vice chairman of the House committee on higher and technical education, said.
The NCLEX refers to the licensure examination administered by the US National Council of State Boards of Nursing Inc. (USNCSBN).
The number of Filipino nurses taking the NCLEX for the first time is considered a reliable indicator as to how many of them are trying to obtain US licenses and seek gainful employment in America.
Gullas supports the overseas deployment of the large surplus of Philippine-educated nurses.
“In an increasingly borderless world, our nurses are entitled to take their skills to wherever they will find the greatest rewards — whether in America, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, or Oman,” he said.
USNCSBN statistics show that among foreign-educated nurses, Filipinos remain the most eager job-seekers in America, Gullas said.
He said a total of 1,045 Indians, 569 Puerto Ricans, 413 South Koreans, and 304 Jamaicans also took the NCLEX for the first time in 2015.
Since 1995, an aggregate of 162,691 nurses educated in the Philippines have taken the NCLEX for the first time.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), registered nurses (RNs) in America receive a median annual pay of $66,640 (P3.1 million), with an hourly rate of $32.04 (P1,531).
Advanced practice nurses who typically have a master’s degree, and who provide specialty care, including certified nurse anesthetists and certified nurse midwives, receive a higher median annual pay of $102,670 (P4.9 million), with an hourly rate of $49.36 (P2,359).
In occupational outlooks, the BLS said the US would need 439,300 additional RNs plus 53,400 advanced practice nurses between now until 2024.
The bureau said employment growth will occur for a number of reasons, including the large number of newly insured patients resulting from Obamacare, or the US Affordable Care Act; the greater emphasis on preventive care; and the rapidly increasing number of chronic conditions, such as diabetes and obesity.
It also cited the strong demand for healthcare services from America’s aging baby-boom generation, as they live longer and more active lives.
The US itself has been producing a large number of nursing graduates every year.
USNCSBN statistics show that a total of 206,170 US-educated nurses, including repeaters, took the NCLEX in 2015, up 1.4 percent from the 203,256 that took the test in 2014.