u/paracetamwah

As a former nurse employee of Asian Hospital and Medical Center, I just want to share my experience, especially to the new board passers who are planning to apply there.
Please think twice before applying.
At first, the offer sounds good and everything looks okay from the outside. But once you’re already inside, it can become very exhausting and suffocating. I worked there for almost 2 years, and based on my experience, I honestly felt that the employees were not being treated fairly.

First, the salary. Nurses and even other employees are not really well compensated considering the workload and responsibilities. In almost 2 years of working there, my increase was only around ₱200. They say the increase depends on your performance, but honestly, sometimes it feels like it also depends on how close or how “sipsip” you are to your manager.

Second is the scheduling. Every cutoff, we have this “request off,” but don’t expect that it will always be granted. They also release the schedule ahead of time, but expect that it can still change anytime. So even if you already planned something on your supposed day off, there’s still a possibility that your schedule will suddenly change.

Third, the OTs. There were times when almost everyone on our floor was already getting sick such as fever, cough, colds, exhaustion, but we still had to continue working because of the staffing. Sometimes you only get one day of rest, and when you come back, you’re expected to work overtime again. It was really tiring, physically and mentally.

Another thing is the constant addition of new systems, protocols, and workloads. There is always something new that employees need to adjust to, but the salary stays almost the same. It feels like they keep adding more responsibilities without really considering how much work the employees are already carrying.

And regarding the recent issue about removing or reducing the NAs/CAs, I personally think it’s a bad move. From what I heard, this already started around May or June. The reason reportedly given was something like, “Nurses survived without CAs during the pandemic, so they can still do it now.” But pandemic staffing should not be used as the standard for normal working conditions.

Imagine doing almost everything on your own as a nurse. Before, some wards could have around 1:8 ratio with an NA/CA. Now, I heard the ratio may be around 1:6 without them. Yes, the number of patients may be lower, but you’re also taking on tasks that were previously shared with support staff.

And this is Asian Hospital. Of course, patients and their families expect a high level of service. They expect their concerns and needs to be attended to immediately. But how can nurses provide everything quickly when they are already overloaded with so many responsibilities?
So to the new board passers, please do your research first before applying. Ask current and former employees. Don’t just look at the name of the hospital or how good the offer sounds at first.

There’s a reason why they are always hiring, and from what I personally experienced, a lot of employees also end up leaving because of the working conditions. I’m not saying everyone will have the exact same experience as me, but this was mine, and I just want new nurses to know what they may be getting into.

Hopefully, employees who are experiencing unfair treatment will also speak up and, if necessary, raise their concerns through the proper channels like DOLE. Nurses and other staffs already have a very demanding job. The least they deserve is proper compensation, enough staffing, fair scheduling, and a workplace that actually cares about their well-being.