The still raging COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need for more health professionals in the Philippines and in other parts of the world.
This bolstered several countries to develop better packages and benefits for healthcare workers for their people.
TrueProfile, a technology-driven platform connecting employers and professionals for careers abroad, listed down the top four countries with career opportunities for Filipino healthcare workers seeking greener pastures outside the Philippines. The platform also considered these countries as those with the “best healthcare systems.”
United Kingdom
UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has around 21,000 Filipino nurses and other healthcare professionals.
They receive the following benefits:
- Market-rate salaries above their expected rate in their home country
- Excellent professional development and career opportunities
- Free healthcare
- Well-equipped hospitals
- Modern facilities
- An opportunity to relocate their families in the UK
Ireland
Ireland offers progressive training in advanced healthcare facilities for their health professionals.
The benefits Filipino health workers receive include the following:
- Salary range between P136,000 and P195,000 depending on experience
- Paid leaves
- Thirty-nine working hours with additional pay for shift differentials
- Permanent, full-time pensionable contracts
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is also considered a “dream destination” for Filipino doctors and nurses.
They normally receive the following career benefits:
- A doctor receives a salary ranging from P134,000 to P250,000 depending on specialty and experience
- Registered nurses’ salaries range from P53,000 to P134,000
- Housing and transportation benefits
- Some hospitals also offer bonuses upon contract completion as well as free return tickets to their home country
TrueProfile noted that foreign professionals in Saudi Arabia are typically hired on a contractual basis.
“The duration of each contract is anywhere between 12 to 24 months, with 40 to 60 hours of work per week. The standard workweek is divided into morning and night shifts,” the company said.
United Arab Emirates
The UAE also has numerous benefits for healthcare professionals.
Salary packages vary per emirate or kingdom.
In Dubai, nurses in government hospitals receive at least P140,000. Meanwhile, in Abu Dhabi, nurses can get paid twice.
In general, healthcare workers are granted the following benefits:
- Paid leaves
- Insurance
- Visa renewals
- Salary increments depending on the hospital you work for
Some struggles of Filipino healthcare workers
Since the start of the pandemic, Filipino healthcare workers in the country had been calling for higher pay, additional benefits and better treatment from the Philippine government in light of the ongoing health crisis.
RELATED: ‘Unfair, offensive’: Health workers slam DOH over shortened isolation, quarantine period
Last January, the Department of Health implemented a new compensation system called One COVID-19 Allowance.
This would replace the current benefits healthcare workers had received, namely, their hazard duty pay, meals, accommodation and transportation allowances, and the special risk allowances.
