Written by Patricia Anne Jaymalin
Published May 13, 2022
The COVID-19 outbreak exposed a lot of health workers’ sacrifices. These medical workers on the frontlines of keeping COVID-19 cases under control, dubbed as "heroes in scrubs," had been exhausted and overwhelmed by their often 24-hour work schedules. If these problems are not addressed, the profession may face a massive exodus in the near future.
Despite eased restrictions in several areas, the Department of Health (DOH) said that COVID-19 is not yet endemic in the country. According to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, the country is still transitioning to the new normal. Hence, as the country continues to fight waves of COVID-19 infections, accessibility and affordability of medical services must be resolved.
Dangers of work
*James, a 32-year-old nurse, said in an interview with Rappler that he resigned from the provincial hospital where he had worked for almost seven years in mid-July 2021. It was a difficult dilemma, but he had to choose between a career or protecting his family from COVID-19 . He desired a hospital with more favorable working circumstances.
“Halos dalawang buwan eh wala kami sinasahod, delayed. Kung may pamilya ka, siyempre saan ka kukuha ng pangkain? Doon talaga ako napuno,” James said.
(Our salary was delayed for two months. If you have a family to support, how will you be able to put food on the table? That was the last straw for me.)
James is the family's breadwinner. His son is an entering fourth-grade student, and his wife is expecting their second child. Since his exposure to the virus was significant - he had been assigned to the hospital's emergency department – he said the condition of his pregnant wife was a major factor in his decision.
“Exposed na exposed talaga ako dahil na-assign ako sa ER [emergency room]. Nabuntis kasi si misis, sabi ko mahirap ang ganito, kaya nag-resign ako. ‘Yung exposure doon sa virus, matindi eh,” he said.
(I was really exposed in the hospital because I was assigned to the ER. My wife got pregnant, and so I said this will be risky, so I resigned. The exposure to the virus there was really high.)
According to James, the hospital provided little to no assistance for them to be properly safeguarded. He said they requested housing from the management so that they would not bring the virus home to their families.
“Nag-suggest kami sa ‘bisor ko sa ER na kung sakali na pwede kami magkaroon ng bahay, kaming mga staff, kasi marami na sa amin ang nagpa-positive. Sabi aaprubahan pa raw. Hanggang sa umalis ako, wala pa rin,” he said.
(We suggested to our supervisor in the ER if they could provide us lodging because many of the staff were getting sick and testing positive for the virus. They said it was still up for approval. Up until I left, the request had not yet been granted.)
Salary and benefits delayed
Vice President Leni Robredo said last January that the country's healthcare system has to be fixed as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact Filipinos' lives.
“Parang ‘yung pandemic exposed the systemic ills in our healthcare system. Masyado tayong naging complacent in the past na nung nagkaroon ng pandemic, do’n tayo talaga, ‘yung lahat ng pagpapabaya natin over the years nararamdaman natin ngayon,” Robredo said.
(The pandemic sort of exposed the systemic ills in our healthcare system. We became too complacent in the past that when the pandemic came, we now experience all the negligence we did in the past years.)
Robredo also said that the Philippines' universal health care (UHC) program should be operationalized faster and that the health budget should be raised.
She further said that the system for paying suitable salaries and benefits to healthcare workers should be improved in order to encourage them to stay and work in the country.
According to Edwin Pacheco, president of the National Kidney and Transplant Institute Employees Association-Alliance of Health Workers, “If we are heroes for you, why has it been a year now, yet we are still here in the streets calling and shouting for the immediate release of our hard-earned COVID-19 benefits?”
The Department of Health (DOH) claimed that delays in the disbursement of benefits were caused by bureaucratic challenges, as they needed to confirm that a health worker had directly treated COVID-19 patients.
Exodus
Various hospitals have been struck by resignations, aggravating a labor crisis and highlighting the suffering of Filipino health workers once more.
According to the Private Hospitals Association of the Philippines, nearly 40% of Filipino nurses in private hospitals quit by 2020. Employees at St. Luke's Medical Center, a large private hospital, recently resigned, disrupting operations at a time when admissions were reaching record highs.
Philippine College of Physicians’ president Dr. Maricar Limpin became emotional in a press briefing as she read the statement of the Healthcare Professionals Alliance for COVID-19 (HPAAC) on the status of health workers.
“Maraming healthcare workers ang pagod, umiiyak, naglalabas ng galit, o nagre-resign na sa trabaho. Nagdurugo ang puso namin, at humihingi kami ng patawad, sa mga pasyenteng kinakailangang tanggihan dahil di na kayang ma-admit,” she said.
(Many of our healthcare workers are tired, shedding tears, expressing their anger, or resigning. Our hearts are bleeding, and we are sorry, for patients whom we have to turn away because we cannot admit them anymore.)
The HPAAC is the Philippines' largest health workers' organization, and it includes medical organizations that have urged the government to evaluate its pandemic response. The country was "losing the battle" against COVID-19, according to the organization.
“Ang daming pangako, tapos hindi naman natutupad. Iyon ‘yung pattern nila: titingnan ito, aaralin ito. We are in a national health emergency situation, ang lahat ng kilos dapat mabilis. Ang bawat oras na sinasayang mo, bawat araw, it means the life of an individual,” said national president of the Filipino Nurses United Maristela Abenojar.
(There have been many broken promises. That’s their pattern: they will look into this, they will study that. We are in a national health emergency situation, so every action should be swift. Every hour, every day that you waste can cost the life of an individual.)
According to Channel News Asia, Philippine hospitals are understaffed. Thus, to alleviate the staff shortages, the Philippine government took action when it barred Filipino nurses from working overseas. However, because they do not receive appropriate compensation, several health workers were unwilling to fill any of the vacancies in the country.
Sharmaine Banog, a nurse who returned to the Philippines after working for four years in Saudi Arabia said, “Instead of just preventing those who’ve done their time from leaving… the government should focus on trying to get the nurses who’ve left the profession to come back — and entice them with a regular salary, benefits, proper protections and hazard pay.”
* not their real names
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