THE Philippines needs to focus on capacity-building among healthcare professionals if the country is to become a destination for nursing care, said a nonstock organization formed by the country’s foreign chambers.
The Retirement and Healthcare Coalition (RHC) said the Philippines is now primed to become one of the leading destinations for nursing care but added that the country needs to keep pace with global trends in the industry to be an attractive option in the region.
“The Philippines is on the right track in becoming a recognized player in this very new market. What needs to be done is capacity building in the medical field,” RHC Executive Director Marc Daubenbuechel said in a statement on Tuesday.
The RHC is a nonprofit, nonstock organization formed by the European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, American Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines, Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Korean Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines.
Daubenbuechel said the Philippines needs to improve its supply of medical professionals in geriatrics.
“The Philippines needs to upgrade its roster of geriatric doctors, which currently only totals 140 with no specialized geriatric nurses. This is mainly due to the lack of extensive geriatric courses that address proper long-term care, including psychological care for dementia patients and their families.”
Thailand currently dominates the nursing-care industry in Asia because of government investments in the upgrading of its medical facilities, according to documents provided by the RHC.
Still, Daubenbuechel said the Philippines already has a built in advantage with its location, weather and the Filipinos’ fluency in English, “which most of the other countries offering the same service does not possess.”
Already, there is a nursing home for Germans in Iloilo and nursing homes for foreign retirees are also being built in Cebu and Metro Manila, RHC documents said. Daubenbuechel said the RHC expects more nursing facilities to be built in the country with costs for such service rising in Europe and the United States of America. Even with the Philippines lagging behind its neighbors in attracting foreign retirees seeking a nursing facility, Daubenbuechel said there seems to be a built in market for local senior citizens.
“The total number of beds in private institutions quintupled in the last three years and about 80 percent of the bed capacity is now occupied by Filipino residents. This increase is a strong indicator that there is also a need for geriatric services for the local market,” Daubenbuechel said.
Daubenbuechel said the RHC expects the demand for nursing homes to expand exponentially over the next few years and that it can be segmented further into home care and day care for foreign and local retirees.
The RHC is holding its Retirement & Healthcare Master Class 2014 in partnership with the Department of Tourism and Philippine Retirement Authority.
Catherine N. Pillas