The Philippines are more than 10,000 kilometers away from Austria. 24 Filipino nurses have left their homeland behind and will support and relieve the staff at the Wels-Grieskirchen Clinic. One of them is Janeth Baldemor. The 36-year-old conducted the interview with OÖNachrichten today in very good German. After jobs as a nurse in hospitals in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the qualified nurse also worked in a nursing home in Germany.
Why did she and the others choose Austria? “Here we have a better future and better job opportunities. We also receive a lot of support from the hospital, and we are grateful for that,” says the Filipina. The clinic provides affordable staff housing. In Germany, housing was very expensive in comparison, says Baldemor. The clinic also paid for the flight through the agency it commissioned.
It is difficult to live on a nurse’s salary in the Philippines, explains Baldemor. This is why so many nursing professionals are moving abroad, which is why essential staff are now also lacking in the Philippines.
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at the Wels-Grieskirchen Hospital [OÖNplus]
Avegail dela Cruz confirms this. “The salary is really very low, in Europe we earn five or six times as much, in Austria the benefits are higher than in many other countries, here you get a 13th and 14th salary and good social security,” says the 39-year-old, who worked for nine years in Saudi Arabia and one year in Germany. Her family, her mother and siblings also no longer live in the Philippines, they work in Milan.
Janeth Baldemor, on the other hand, left her husband, mother and sister behind in the Philippines. “But they supported my decision, we stay in constant contact via video call and Facebook,” says the young woman, who hopes to be able to bring her husband over one day. A holiday flight to see them might be possible next year, says Janeth.
Support when arriving
The hospital provides the 25 nursing staff with the integration officer Wolfgang Kuttner, who is available to help with all matters and with any questions or hurdles that arise. “The better we support the new nursing staff when they first arrive, the greater the chance of long-term support,” says hospital manager Carmen Breitwieser.
The Filipino nursing training corresponds to the Austrian bachelor’s level. Recognition of the training as a nursing assistant is possible after a course at the hospital training center, which starts in September. The exam follows in May, after which you can further qualify as a qualified health and nursing professional.
Source: Nachrichten
