Will Finance Minister's budget support initiatives of community group?

FNSG Press Statement

March 3, 2005

It is good news Minister of Finance, Honorable Ralph Goodale, has announced in his Budget 2005 speech that $75 million has been allocated to accelerate the integration of foreign-trained health care professionals. But will community organizations that are active and successful in supporting foreign-trained professionals benefit from their funding?

For the last 10 years, the Filipino Nurses Support Group has been providing community-based programs for its over 500 members and contacts of Philippine-trained nurses in BC. These community programs have proven successful - over 160 members have become registered nurses in BC, 10 of whom have recently passed the national nursing exam in January 2005.

FNSG has relied primarily on volunteer and self-reliant efforts and have proven successful not only in empowering Philippine-trained nurses become registered, but also in contributing to Canada's health care system as many of them are now working in the BC health care system. For the last 40 years, Canada has attracted and retained skilled immigrants, notably Filipino nurses. During the 1960's and 70's, Filipino nurses were recruited and worked immediately as nurses in Canada through reciprocity agreements.

Today, however, Canada continues to entice Filipino nurses to Canada but to work not as nurses, but instead as live-in "nannies" or "caregivers" under the Live-in Caregiver Program (LCP), a program of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) and Human Resource and Social Development Canada grants the nursing profession too little points for foreign-trained nurses wanting to enter as landed immigrants. CIC leaves little option for foreign-trained nurses but to choose the LCP, despite the very public outcry to resolve the intensifying nationwide nursing shortage.

For government to be true to their committment of "sound financial management" and "to progress with the recognition of foreign credentials," they must consider investing the increased federal budget for health towards: * recognizing foreign-trained nurses, especially those already in Canada, through reciprocity agreements * building the capacity of community groups, like that of FNSG, who have proven successful in implementing and sustaining programs that have helped not only its own members to become registered and to work as nurses, but also have helped supply the nursing profession with highly educated and skilled nurses.

The Filipino Nurses Support Group will be holding a press conference Tuesday, March 8, 2005 10:00 am at the Kalayaan Centre, 451 Powell St, Vancouver, BC.

For more information, contact Leah or Sheila at 604-255-6870