How does everyone feel about these foreign trained nurses coming to the US?

This is not to bash anyone but I do want everyone's honest opinion. I am not a nurse however I feel that foreign trained nurses coming to the aid of the US is hurting the shortage not helping. And it's taking away jobs from American nurses. How does everyone else feel?

I don't see any problem with that. These people from other countries want job just as American nurses. If there's an American nurse better than a foreign applicant, of course, the latter will be denied to get the job. Hospital facilities are service oriented. Administrators will hire people topping the list of applicants.

The case is just the same when American nurses go to other countries to work there; they are hired instead of the natives of those countries.

I say, may the most qualified person get the job, regardless of the country of origin!

I know that >than 60% of American nurses only have their 2-year ADN education while, for example, 100% of Filipino nurses have their 4-year degree. Foreign nurses are an asset, from my experience :)

Good replys! Something to think about.

Something to think about - are you a nurse or are you in a nursing program? I'm thinking about Nursing as a career and I wanted to get some insight.

Thanks,

I am doing the pre-reqs for a nursing program.

No offense Panthera but this kind of sweeping generalizations that you are airing on cyberspace show exactly why you only hold an associate degree and unable to upgrade it into a BSN in one of your numerous universities. The fact that an American nurse in Texas poisoned her patients does not imply that all American nurses have a murderous obsession. Hence, stop lumping all Filipinos in one basket and casting aspersions on our character. Filipinos are a diverse nation with each having differing traits and backgrouds much like the rest of the world. The WHO chief nursing scientist is a Filipina and it doesn't mean that all Filipino nurses are of her caliber. So, Panthera get a life and begin by upgrading your qualification so your job does not fall in the firing line with the ensuing depression and bitterness - you said you "worked" - is that a past tense? Sorry for your job loss but to continue holding grudges against foreign nurses particularly Filipino nurses risk unmasking your redneck, hillbilly background - again no offense luv.

Kaiser_kid in Modesto, California said: Something to think about - are you a nurse or are you in a nursing program? I'm thinking about Nursing as a career and I wanted to get some insight.

Thanks,

Work in the field with a real nurse before you get into it! It can be wonderful but it is VERY VERY hard work!!!!!The politics are awful and management/insurance companies are a nightmare.

These foreign nurses are coming over here and getting into hiring positions and then next thing you know you may not find too many while english speaking nurse in the building.In other words if given the opportunity they will take over building after building like a invasion on our shores.They do not communicate well with the American nurses or the patients they are here for the money and I heard these hospitals are getting money for hiring foreign nurses and why they can do know wrong.Most do lack people skills or critical thinking skills and many are rude to the american nurses.Go into these long term facilitys and see how many Americans work there, esp. white people. There is also skin tears on the patients from rough handling this was rare or unheard of until we started getting people who had to get off welfare and the amount of foreign nurses. I know a RN who went into the building of one, she was a travel nurse and quit the first day due to indiference and lack of communication with these foreign nurses.She was a nurse who could see trouble ahead and wouldn't toleraste it.We don't need any more, they are threatening American jobs as well as quality of nursing for the patients. These places should be monitered by the Fed. It seems to me there should be a small percent of foreign nurses compared to American nurses not the opposite. I did notice the nurses from India are much better with the patients than other foreign nurses coming over here.

PS Excuse any typos Ive been up 24 hrs now.

SAHARA, do you have your RN or LPN license? Any college at all?

Yes I do have a licence and much college with much scholarship offers while there..it was fun lol.. as well as studies in forensics. My licence started over 30 yrs ago and saw many changes along the way.What were up against now appears more corp. bottom line greed than what it meant then.They have no idea the internal goings on of a nurse but continue to pile up the paper work on us. I figure they are hiring these foreign nurses no just for money but because they will be willing to do anything they ask. The only thing is, many don't..in the process things don't get done..like the patient care all the meds of those who cant talk, and change of conditions that go ignored.I remember walking in where a foreign nurse was giving a IV to a baby with complicated seizures and she had it running with no limit on it. When I asked her how much she was infusing..she didn't know.Im am now like many of my era are getting out of this kind of nursing..all I can say is good luck to the rest of you and watch out for your family.

SAHARA,

You don't sound like a nurse to me. You sound like a bitter, old CNA who might have taken some classes here and there and have worked under foreign nurses. Did you sit for the NCLEX? What type of license do you hold? How do you feel about foreign doctors and pharmacists?

With the current economic situation nursing positions should go to the US nurses.

A foreign BSN is not the same as USA BSN, since many nations don't have 12 years of primary education. In fact they have the same education or less then a ASN.

When there are positions available foreign trained nurses should be assessed like the SEC programs in the UK, Canada or other countries and then complete a program like a new graduate.

I had an opinion last week - a very strong one. Obviously, it must have been to tough because it was deleted.

So to keep it simple - Let's support Americans.

had an opinion last week - a very strong one. Obviously, it must have been too tough because it was deleted.

So to keep it simple - Let's support Americans.

answer my question - if you don't need the foreign nurses who is going to take care of America people . your country don't train enough nurses.please stop bitterringgg to the foreign nurses.

I tried to post a response but it never went up.

Lets just say I agree with panthera and Mary

yoyo, Im sure all here don't have a problem with foreign nurses and even invite the diversity,that is not the issue. Its when American nurses or those transfering from another city or state can't find a job because there is too many nurses while they are still importing more from foreign countrys is the problem.Even foreign nurses are finding that a problem wondering whos job they are going to replace while slowly getting rid of higher paying nurses for these new nurses.The basic reason they do it is money they get as well as keep nurses wages down and even many foreign nurses who have been here for awhile can see that.

I think the problem is also other cultures coming here and not assimilating. They bring their social and cultural customs here with little to no regard for what is established here. The communication issues are horrible. They may speak english but communication is far more than just speaking the same language.

pinkfusion, your absolutley right, too much diversity stands in the way of collaboration and good team work/patient care.I have traveled in different parts of the world and have never seen such diversity to the degree we must accomodate or at all in some places, only here.I heard something intresting from one foreign nurse from the mid east some where can't remember where she was, I think a Arab country with wealthy clients. She told me that they do practically one to one with them and if they get a bed sore the nurse can be jailed.It's about getting that bad here except we don't have the luxury of one to one. And now she is here, hum wonder why.

London, foreign nurses get hired because of the dollar issue. If you can hire a foreign nurse for $16.00 an hour compared to $23.00 for American - today, the American Corporation will hire the $16.00 foreign nurse because she's cheaper. It's all in the dollar.

Corporations are greedy. Look where it got the United States today.

Hi London, your comment.I think you have a coulor issue.
No actually I do not but have a problem with those who do..try to use it to their advantage or just plain have a problem.For instance the new American Mexican Judge who was in question on her comment"I think I could come to a better decision than a white Judge. I has broght consern wherther she is going to be concerned with color than with the fairessor "letter of the law" of the law.Was her comment racist, or accusing white Judges of being so, thinking her nationality gives her a better understanding of the lawor just to some. My Grandmother was born in England, not to be pred. lol but I hvae had high regard for English nurses I have worked with.I have also raised my children not to be racist and have one grandchild who is part Brazilian and one part Mexican and love and adore them both.But thats not what Im seeing from the other end ine can't ask one to stop while the other doesn't, it doesn't work. Its like saying put your kinfe down while the other doesn't and lundges it at you, it cowardly and only provoke problems that may have other wise not even been there.People will have a certain about of pride for who they are, that is normal and natural but some go beyond that on all nationalitys.

Sorry bout typos again another 24 hr.
Mary in Tampa, exactly and its wrong for any country, and they love to do that in any women dominated jobs, they should ALL be paid the SAME for the SAME work factoring in experience of course. Other wise it is unfair hiring and labor practices and they should be held accountable also for not following the law. Which most countrys can only hire when a skill is needed they can't in their country first.But when they have 25 applications sitting in front of them and shove them off the desk from cheeper labor which is also unfair for the person they are exploiting this is illegal.It causes resentment on both sides.Ive heard so many new nurses saying they can't get jobs because they have no experience, they used to train them yrs. ago, now how are they supposed to get that experience.

I know I'm making an assumption that we are all ladies, so please don't be offended if you are a male nurse, this does not apply to you. But if you are a male nurse, thank you for the courage to join a female dominated profession.

Back to the ladies, ladies we are in the boat we in because we fight against each other. We will never change things for the better by destroying our sisters, no matter what country she is from.

I agree that American Nurses should be given priority, but unfortunately that is not the reality of our profession. This reality is not because of foreign nurses. It is because of greed for the almighty dollar. Lets be for real, if any of us were living in another country, and there was a better opportunity for us elsewhere we would go. We would not decide "Oh I cannot do that because I may be taking the jobs of natives of that country."

We are all members of the same race, the human race. We all want a good life, and we want to provide the best we can for our families. Lets not let Corporate America and it's greed rob of us our God given nature to have compassion and respect for one another. Remember, they win when they can get us to destroy each other. If we are going to fight against anyone lets fight against the one who is responsible.

Much love and respect for every nurse around the globe who has chosen to give their life for the good of others. Please don't fight with me on this. Look deep inside and know that you are better than that.

JD, just logged on to see your comment. That is a beautiful way off looking at things and I once believed as you as well as many of my subordinates. But things are getting out of hand and its the utter disprspect and even hatred that we are up against. But yes I would as probably you care if I went to another land out of concious if I was causing hardships to fellow nurses..its the amout that are being injected and what happens next. I will give you and example but since I cannot put in a link here I want you to see something of the maginitude that Americans are up against and it is now coming for other third world countrys as well and how they think when they think they have the upper hand. To us it is not about that, but to them, it is. Go to google videos. Once there write in " Illegal aliens attacking American seniors". Date was 1996 I believe.This is true and it happened, and will happen in greater magnitudes unless American citizens get a back bone.Note that what you will see might be shocking to those who have..SO FAR been sheltered from it.

SAHARA in West Sacramento, California said: These foreign nurses are coming over here and getting into hiring positions and then next thing you know you may not find too many while english speaking nurse in the building.In other words if given the opportunity they will take over building after building like a invasion on our shores.They do not communicate well with the American nurses or the patients they are here for the money and I heard these hospitals are getting money for hiring foreign nurses and why they can do know wrong.Most do lack people skills or critical thinking skills and many are rude to the american nurses.Go into these long term facilitys and see how many Americans work there, esp. white people. There is also skin tears on the patients from rough handling this was rare or unheard of until we started getting people who had to get off welfare and the amount of foreign nurses. I know a RN who went into the building of one, she was a travel nurse and quit the first day due to indiference and lack of communication with these foreign nurses.She was a nurse who could see trouble ahead and wouldn't toleraste it.We don't need any more, they are threatening American jobs as well as quality of nursing for the patients. These places should be monitered by the Fed. It seems to me there should be a small percent of foreign nurses compared to American nurses not the opposite. I did notice the nurses from India are much better with the patients than other foreign nurses coming over here.

Think 100 times before you say something about foreign nurse...... what do you think if there no foreign nurse, so what you going think now? do you think all americans can do there job with out education but well communicate person? tell me honestly, I am not a nurse but i do know whats going on about this issue. Is better to start asking your self, If i am a better american. 60% american citizen are not well educated. are you one of those?

We here in California have American nurses graduated and ready to work. But many of the available jobs are monopolized by Filipino nurses in my facility. I work with nurses that work 2 full time and often 1 part time job. We have grauates from ournursing programs that cannot get a job. Perhaps there should be, as in other countries a maximum amount of hours these nuses can work. Many times the money is send to the Phillipines. Much of the money is NOT circulated through our sustem. I often chat with some of my staff and it seems money, money. Quite often there are days when the major laguag spoken for the day is tagalog. A nd when the nursing director is also Flipina the rest of us natives are in the minority and we dare not complain.

Jake,
You are so right. It is really a shame because we could be putting our new nurses to work right now.

Unknown, your comment..no foreign nurse, so what you going think now? do you think all americans can do there job with out education but well communicate person?
Before you go around questioning others about their education you better get a little more educated your self.
Obviously your not a represenative of the United States and in fact a discrase to all the veterans alive and buried that fought for our Country!If you are..which is "highly unlikely", you are a discrase to every American in our country..

yoyo in Toronto, Ontario said: answer my question - if you don't need the foreign nurses who is going to take care of America people . your country don't train enough nurses.please stop bitterringgg to the foreign nurses.

The language problem you display in your post is a perfect example of one problem that comes from hiring Philippine nurses. I also agree with the poster that says that an extra two years of college does not make you a better nurse. Those two years are not focused on the nursing process.

I also agree with the poster that said philippine nurses lack people skills. I believe it is a combination of language barrier and culture. One BSN I work with was telling me how in the Phillipines the patients are not such whiners, they dont question the nurse and treat them with respect by not questioning the meds they are being given... Definately not an american attitude. I work with one Filipina that I have great respect for. She sets an excellent example to all other nurses but the rest, in my opinion, are sub average.

Sahara, can you please give the patients a sponge. But first, take the urinal off bed 1 and record it in the Fluid Balance Chart. Have you taken the patients sugar level - remember it's no use taking it after they've had breakfast, O.K.? Have you at last passed the hospital's medication exam - you've been working here for 20 years and goodness gracious, love, you are still not accredited to give meds. You're not helping with all the chitchat - we need certifications, yes, yes, yes, we need help in ivc resitement, iv/cytotoxic admin, iv/oral med admin, catheter insertion, and a host of other RN duties. You can do all your certified nurse assistant duties; it is helpful - helpful to your family as well, but it is not what your country urgently needs - Uncle Sam wants RNs. All your whingeing/cleaning duties will alleviate an iota come a pandemic. When and if you finish your BSN, then finally you might become an administrator; until then, do you honestly think a hillybilly RN wannabe like yourself is more credible than hospital admins and immigration lawyers. Do you have the statistics to back up what you are saying; hell, you don't even have the grammar.

Who said I wasn't accredited to give meds..did it many yrs ago in all fields and still do now occasionally.I did all fields of nursing including ICU. I currently do wounds, but help out with the IVs once in awhile.I typo-ed wounds.By the way get your map out the hillbillys are in the south..but as far as I seen there pretty good nurses.

lagava, By the way my daughters grandmother was a Aussie and also a nurse ( RN) who served in WW11 who died of cancer way back.And I was also a ponser for a child in the phillipines on top of being a nurse when..you know nurses didnt make all that much.I did nurses aid as a teen before going to nursing school and 2 of ushad to care for 100 patients at night who most all were incontinent. Saw the unjustices and went forward. You know how much we made the ? 10 dollars a day and licenced nurses didnt fare too much better then. I made less as a liccenced nurse than nurses aids made today. We had to calculate our own IVs we didnt have machines doing it for us or tell us when they were completed. We had NG tubes instead of GTs all over the place many were pulled out.In Icu we could have many more patients than mandated today or anywhere for that matter.So before you go telling me how much work you have to do..your preaching to the choir..except when I started out we didnt get payed much for all our work.We didn't have infection control (Attempted protection) that there is today, too expensive they claimed, we were expendable.It wasn't until the pay finally improved did we have all these people coming into the hospitals and LTC facilitys.You do the math.

Learning Something New Everyday in Stockton, California said: This is not to bash anyone but I do want everyone's honest opinion. I am not a nurse however I feel that foreign trained nurses coming to the aid of the US is hurting the shortage not helping. And it's taking away jobs from American nurses. How does everyone else feel?

even though Iam American, Iam offended from the comment.
does it matter where a person is from? dag' cant we all get along.whats up with the negativity ? Just because someone is from another country doesn't make them a bad person. its up to the individual person . be careful one day you may need a person from a foreign country to save your !ss.

Genenerally we can, as long as the people are not trying to take over locals jobs. But the main culprit as most I know feel is the corporations are behind it. Like Lygaya summed up but not in totality the work on our plate. Corp.are bringing them in to the degree it is causing a over supply of nurses to keep nurses wages down.Instead of looking at a nurse that has much experience and has been with a place for many yrs and has much input to offer the new nurses gets manipulated out of a job in favore of lower wages. (No it hasn't happened to me) People who have no clue what nurses go through day by day tend to want to add more to it.So when they send these nurses here, they don't send them to lighten your load or create better quality nursing. Creating in some citys a over abundance of nurses they then can say..well if you don't like it..theres so and so over there who will do it for mabye less pay. They apparantly also dont get the liabilitys. Especially in long term care, they have up to 30 patient, semi acute patients, poly pharmacy and up to 16 sliding scale diabetics to watch not counting change of conditions and falls. Their setting nurses up for trouble for as well as themselves.Now more and more their time is taken up by inquiring familys while the nurse is trying to do all the aforementioned. But I guess as long as they can afford to pay insurance and have attorneys at hand they could care less if there is still a profit in it they will do what they want, or so it seems. Also heard from a nurse manager(who negotiates pay for ICU nurses) that they are using the economy to give nurses less pay even though their payments from insurance is the same and census isnt down (amount of patients). So those inquiring bottom line nursing isn't for wimps, as you see here they are fighters and strongly believe what they are doing and getting harder and harder on them all the time.Perhaps some day their will be all foreign nurses because no body here will do it any more.

ohh sahara sahara sahara poor thing hehehheh no offend your funny, you dont have any clue what your saying. its is erelevant paranoia. simple metaphor, job seeker hired by employer BECAUSE THEY ARE HIGHLY QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL for the job.
job seeker are not hired BECAUSE THEY ARE QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL. simple english hope you will understand, individual being born to make mistake.. Thank you.

Dylan, I know and thats how some of them talk to the patients too.

Indiana, thats how people like you talk to the patients too. I get a lot of complaints about that.

SAHARA in West Sacramento, California said: Indiana, thats how people like you talk to the patients too. I get a lot of complaints about that.

sahara are you getting complaint now? are you part of admin? theres nothing you can do about it. deal with it or quit your job and find something else that you can dominate your american supreme being. racial discrimination is the one factor rottin your brain. you can make a change if you start by your own first.

Panthera in Odessa, Texas said: I am an RN, with a 2 year assoc. degree. I worked at a hosptial that years ago brought numerous Filipino nurse's to our hospital. They amy have had to go to school longer for the same degree, but I can guarantee, that did not make them any smarter. They lack in people skills for the patient and co-workers. If you are sick and just want a nurse that just does what is ordered for you, give you your meds and leave, then hire all the foreign nurse's you want. But, if you want a nurse that has true compassion for their patient, and isn't ther JUST for the money, so they can get the rest of their family over here, then by all means, hire the robots. The only TRUE COMPASSION I've seen in any of them is for each other and the American dollar. Like I said, I worked at a hospital that had at the LEAST 100 Filipino nurse's, so yes I know this first hand. HIRE AMERICAN!! THERE ARE 1000'S OF AMERICAN NURSE'S OUT OF WORK, BECAUSE OF THE INFLUX OF FOREIGN NURSE'S. I also feel anyone with an idea about this all, should be other nurse's, otherwise YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!

you are so wrong baby......... anywhere in USA you can find Nurses job... if USA have alot of american nurse why they going to hire a foreign nurse, did you know that employer will pay everything like paperwork fee, airfare, attorny fee, housing allowance, and food allowance just to work here in USA and how come you came up like usa is over population of american nurses. in fact employer are really desperate for foreign nurses to work here.

Indiana, I got a better idea if you don't like it why don't you go back home and make your 4 dollars an hour, can't remember what that is in pesos. You remind me of a fillipino[ nurse who got sued for not hiring any afro american nurses..she said they were lazy.You know there some fillipino nurses and other foregin nurses I would rather work with "slelectivly, not generally" than some American nurses Ive know anyday. But your not one of them ha ha.But your doing a good job representing what some of us are talking about.

Sa pamamagitan ng ang paraan, Ikaw ba ay isang nars? Excuse my tagalog but who know maybe better than your if your filipina.

SAHARA in West Sacramento, California said: Indiana, I got a better idea if you don't like it why don't you go back home and make your 4 dollars an hour, can't remember what that is in pesos. You remind me of a fillipino[ nurse who got sued for not hiring any afro american nurses..she said they were lazy.You know there some fillipino nurses and other foregin nurses I would rather work with "slelectivly, not generally" than some American nurses Ive know anyday. But your not one of them ha ha.But your doing a good job representing what some of us are talking about.

hey sahara like i told you i am not a nurse...... and i am sure i'm making much more than you. anyhow you always out of reality and topic issue, jumping anywhere of conclusion. your hypothesis deep idiosyncrasy profiling adjective attitude.

Indiana,Hindi isang nars? okay I guess you will have to go back and read the constitution and learn it. The reason I may seem to jump around is that I don't care who you are. Its not about who you are.Like I said I had a sponsor child from the filipines once who used to write me in filipino. At the time nurses were making poverty wages. She said she thought she either wanted to be a nurse or a teacher. At the time I encouraged her to be a teacher because she would have a life.Its about corruption and breach of laws that were supposedly based on the constitution.Yes there a time when every nurse should retire, in dignity for all the years of helping others but many of them then live in poverty for all that they sacrificed due to corporations who treat them as expendable. Could it happen to filipinas too once they settle in just can't go back home and now corporations look to some other country again, yes it could.Don't know if I mentioned it but asked two nurses "friends of mine" one filipina, one from India, who are those people your training? They both said "my replacement".The people were from another country also.No joke but we did laugh about it.One made 5 med errors in one day, they didn't last.Thats how their greed hurts the patients.

Licensed RN in Avon, Massachusetts said: With the current economic situation nursing positions should go to the US nurses.

A foreign BSN is not the same as USA BSN, since many nations don't have 12 years of primary education. In fact they have the same education or less then a ASN.

When there are positions available foreign trained nurses should be assessed like the SEC programs in the UK, Canada or other countries and then complete a program like a new graduate.

Foreign nurses are assessed. Before they can take a job in the United States, they must be licensed in the state they wish to work in...not one license is issued without a foreign credential evaluation either done by the Board of Nursing or a outside credentialing authority.

And while you are correct in saying that some countries have a weird combined high school/college system, most foreign nurses do complete a separate high school diploma as well as a separate BSN equivalent program. Immigration laws for them mandate that as a minimum qualification for their visas.

You want the sad truth? Without foreign nurses and doctors, too, the USA would have a big shortage and care would go way, way down. So let the foreign nurses train in their country at their expense and then work here, saves us money all around!

My concern is when India gets close to the USA standard of living what will we do when their doctors won't come here anymore?

"From where they overthrow democratic leaders,
not for the people but for the Wall Street Journal readers,
from where blacks, indigenous peoples and Asians, were once
slaves of the Caucasians, and it's amazing how they trained them,
to be racist against themselves in a place they were raised in,
and you kept us caged in,
destroyed our culture and said that you civilized us,
raped our woman and when we were born you despised us,
gentrified us, agent provacateurs divide us,
and crucified every revolutionary messiah,
so I'm a start a global riot,
that not even your fake,
anti-communist dictators can keep quiet,
f*** your charity medicine, try to murder me,
the immunizations you gave us were full of mercury,
so now I see the Third World like the r** game soldier,
nationalize the industry and take it over!"

bump

OK first of all I am the most un-racist person. (My wife by the way is from Europe. I simply was stating fact. I also was speaking from my facility where at least 90% on the license staff is Filipino. I know for a fact that there have been new graduates that work in my area that cannot get hired. To be perfectly honest I wish there were some type of law that would prevent any one from working so many jobs or and perhaps no more than 50 hours per week. But that's me! We have new nursing grads ready to work. We do not need more medical people coming and preventing US trained nursed fom being employed. This has not a thing to do with race but there are some other ramifications that go along with folks coming and working in th US and sending a substantial amount of money to thier native country whether it be the Phillipines, Mexico, europe etc. I would like more of that money to be circulated in the USA. As I recall I think we are in a huge financial crisis! I talk to my staff I know what they do! Lot's of money going home. Sometimes I think it is just pure greed in many cases. So you see there are several concerns that I have as formentioned. but thanks for your response.