Originally Published August 25, 2002

LAKELAND - Ruben Adriano is dedicated to helping people.

As a physician at Clark & Daughtery Medical Group in Lakeland, he tries to give his patients the best treatment.

But helping people is not the only reason Adriano chose his profession. He knew a degree in medicine would make it easier for him to migrate to the United States.

``When health care professionals come here, they really improve their quality of life,'' said Adriano, who is raising three sons in Lakeland with his wife, Mila, also from the Philippines.

Adriano, an internist who has been here since 1992, is among many Filipinos trained in the medical field who are moving to the United States for its greater opportunity. Some hospitals are recruiting medical professionals in the Philippines - particularly nurses - offering better pay and other incentives.

It was the lure of a better life that helped lead occupational therapist Julie Sillaman to move to the United States from the Philippines in 1992.

``People in health care come to work here because of the money. It is easier to buy a house and car here. Back home it is not so easy, especially if you are a ... [physical therapist] or nurse,'' she said.

Because of the countries' similar university health care curriculums and teaching methods, recruiting health care professionals from the Philippines is a viable option for U.S. hospitals looking to fill vacancies.

The American Hospital Association last year estimated 168,000 positions in hospitals across the nation were vacant. The majority of positions open are nursing positions, but there also are vacancies for pharmacists, physicians and others.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 1 million nurses will be needed in the United States by 2010.

Administrators at Regency Medical Center recently recruited 40 nurses in Manila through a nursing recruitment company, Nurses to USA Inc., based in Gainesville. Administrators looked at several countries before recruiting nurses solely from Manila.

``We decided to go with the Philippines because nurses receive a four-year baccalaureate there, and their programs and textbooks are all in English. They take the same tests that American nurses take, and the work ethic of the Filipinos are exemplary,'' said Suzie Hart, division director for Regency Medical Center.

Hospital administrators offered potential employees the standard starting nursing salary, free apartment housing on the hospital premises for 90 days and a dream of life in America. The nurses will arrive in December.

``The nursing crisis is gradually going away because of the new surplus of foreign caregivers,'' Hart said.

Nurse Madolin Oquias-Soriano, who has worked at Regency Medical Center for seven years, said universities in the Philippines are overloaded with nursing students.

``When I went back home two years ago, I saw the number of nursing graduates triple since I had graduated,'' said Soriano, who came to the United States as a nurse in 1987.

Raymund Ravel, a Filipino raised in California, is president of Nurses to USA. The company opened in 2000 and has recruited nurses from the Philippines for several large hospitals across the state and country. Ravel's company checks the backgrounds, test scores and educations of Filipino nurses who want to work in the United States.

``Nurses really want to come here because at home they get $5 a day; here they make about $16 an hour,'' he said.

At Tampa General Hospital, more than 30 nurses have been recruited from the Philippines since 2000. Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg has recruited from the Philippines as well as other countries.

Other area hospitals, such as Lakeland Medical Center and St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, have decided not to recruit internationally.

Only A Quick Fix?

The American Nurses Association says importing foreign nurses from any country is a temporary solution to a deeper problem surrounding the nursing profession.

``We don't see this as an answer to the shortage. I believe it is time for the U.S. to get their act together for the nursing profession,'' said Cheryl Peterson, senior policy fellow for the association.

``Nurses are viewed in hospitals as a disposable commodity. Wages haven't been kept up, and the working conditions are deteriorating. This is a bad situation for nurses; these are issues the hospitals and U.S. government have to answer.''

She fears foreign countries may suffer a shortage of health care providers if they continue to export their nurses, physicians and physical therapists.

``Right now we have a worldwide shortage of health care providers. In the Philippines, colleges educate their nurses specifically for export. This will cause serious brain drain for the country,'' Peterson said.

Marelene Mendiola, a physical therapist who practices in Winter Haven, is worried about medical care back in her home country.

``I am really proud that Filipinos are in demand here, but on the other hand, I really pity the Philippines because our country will have nobody left to serve our own people,'' she said.

Health Care Boomer

The worldwide shortage of health care providers is an issue being monitored closely by various U.S. medical associations.

``We do not see a problem with recruiting foreign health care professionals into the U.S. Hospitals nationwide are looking at innovative and creative ways to fill the positions of caregivers who are now retiring,'' said Amy Lee, spokeswoman for the American Hospital Association.

``Right now, these professionals are retiring, but our baby boomer generation is needing more medical attention, and more people are now living longer.

``Though this is a short-term solution to the problem, it certainly helps them in being able to provide the needed medical services to their communities,'' Lee said.

The American Health Care Association also supports hospitals bringing in foreign health care professionals.

Nelson Marquez, a professor of physical therapy at Polk Community College, said health care professionals will keep emigrating from the Philippines because the demand for their services remains high. Marquez originally came to the United States in 1989 as a physical therapist from the Philippines.

``There is such a great need in the health care field right now. The Filipinos that come here know that, and most of them are now educated for export,'' Marquez said.

Alvyn Joy C. Halili and his wife, Marelene Mendiola, came to the United States from the Philippines as physical therapists in 1995. They feel good about their move.

``All overseas workers from the Philippines are really the unspoken heroes. We provide dollars to the Philippines to help our families, which really boosts the economy,'' said Halili, team leader for the wound care division at Winter Haven Hospital.

``The U.S. health care systems is one of the best and most lucrative medical systems in the world. My colleagues are from Canada, Japan and Germany, and they feel the same way.''

Reporter Nadia Gergis can be reached at (813) 754-3763.