Filipino nurses and other health care workers is in demand abroad, and recently Canadian Embassy in Manila announced that Sasketchewan will hire hundreds of them.
Saskatchewan is a province in Canada that borders the United States to the south. It has over a million population with a large Filipino community of about 33,000. Tagalog is the number one foreign language spoken in the province, according to the Embassy.
The Embassy said that Saskatchewan is planning to recruit, train, incentivize and retain more medical workers to strengthen its health care system.
“We want to spread the word to health care workers in the Philippines that our province is a place of great opportunity,” Saskatchewan’s Minister of Health Paul Merriman said.
“We would love to welcome into our friendly Saskatchewan communities health care workers from the Philippines who are interested in coming to work and live here along with their families,” he added.
Saskatchewan is the first province in Canada to pilot an accelerated training and assessment pathway for eligible nursing recruits from the Philippines.
Participants would remain in the Philippines to fulfill the online components of the intensive educational program and final clinical and practicum components are completed in Saskatchewan.
Successful applicants who commit to a return for service agreement will have costs covered for language and education assessments, bridging/training, fees related to professional exams and registration, other costs incurred while training such as travel for clinical placement.
In addition, costs shouldered by the international recruits include transportation, accommodation and other settlement related costs (i.e. immigration fees), the Embassy said.
Merriman said the Canadian province offer a number of full-time jobs and supports for internationally trained health care professionals in several occupations including Registered Nurses, Licensed Practical Nurses, Continuing Care Assistants and Medical Laboratory Assistants.
Details on health care opportunities and how to access them are available at www.saskatchewan.ca/HHR.
Filipinos welcome
The Embassy said several community supports are in place to help with settlement while spouses could receive assistance in securing employment in Saskatchewan within other industries such as trades, construction and food services.
“Our province has had much success in welcoming Filipino nurses and other health care workers into our workforce and our communities,” Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors and Rural and Remote Health Everett Hindley said.
“We wish to invite the Filipino people to consider building a thriving career here in Saskatchewan, where you can enjoy a great quality of life, raise a family and be part of a strong and supportive community.”
Saskatchewan is also currently negotiating a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Philippines on the recruitment of Filipino health care professionals.
The MOU would focus on ethical recruitment and transparency in labor force development.
The Embassy shared that provincial government officials would also lead a health-care recruitment mission to the Philippines before the end of 2022 to promote available work opportunities.
This would include a recruitment and/or hiring event for prospective candidates and a welcome event for candidates with offers of employment or approved immigration applications. (By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora, PNA)