Understanding Healthcare Hiring During the Pandemic
The spotlight on health care workers is heightened during the COVID-19 crisis. Every day, medical workers are always featured as a primary news headline as they are considered crucial front liners while the country is still navigating the pandemic.
A snapshot of the Healthcare industry hiring in the Philippines
Despite the need for health care workers, a decrease in demand is observed in the Philippines. This is contrast from the early months of community quarantine, where Healthcare placed 3rd on the list. The descent of Healthcare industry to 8th place can be attributed to the general slump of the current job market, where unemployment has reached record rates. As non-critical patients are avoiding going to hospitals for their usual checkups and medical tests, profit has been generally down. Hospitals and other medical institutions still rely on other non-healthcare roles in Finance, Admin and IT, and smaller hospitals are struggling to maintain operations. This puts a damp in hiring budgets even if the demand for healthcare is higher than ever.
On the other side, healthcare workers looking to work abroad face challenges as the government has banned medical professionals' deployment due to the coronavirus pandemic. These current events might affect employment opportunities for many skilled doctors and nurses.
However, there is hope. After the general community quarantine period, a sharp increase in hiring for specific roles is seen. Recruitment has resumed, albeit in incremental phases.
As the chart below shows, a pattern is observed wherein we see that the demand in doctors spiked first, followed by nurses. Right now, the trend shows that there is an increased demand for Pharmacists.
Data Source: JobStreet internal database, as of July 2020
The data also shows the demand for remote consultations via healthcare accounts. More and more people are opting to stay at home and consult their symptoms without venturing out. These findings are also consistent with the rising trend of work from home jobs in the Philippines. Meanwhile, healthcare roles that are related to critical patient care, lab tests, and similar are also high in demand.
Supply and demand: where to find our Healthcare workers?
As the National Capital Region continues to be a COVID-19 hotspot, a demand for more health care workers rises in the major cities. Similar locations that have high COVID-19 cases naturally have a higher demand for medical workers, like Cebu, Bulacan, and Cavite. As deployment overseas is still banned, the demand for our medical workers remain unfulfilled during the pandemic.
Locations with most number of job openings for healthcare roles
Data Source: JobStreet internal database, July 2020
Locations with most number of applications for healthcare roles
Data Source: JobStreet internal database, July 2020
Applicants are more concentrated on where the demand is happening. Metro Manila, Calabarzon and Central Luzon continue to be popular choices among healthcare workers.
Hiring Healthcare workers in the Philippines
The future of healthcare in the Philippines depends on many factors, and one of the most important pillars is the medical workers themselves. Due importance should be placed on how healthcare professionals can find a sustainable and meaningful career in the Philippines. Here are a few things to consider in convincing healthcare workers to work locally.
1. ATTRACTIVE SALARY AND BENEFITS PACKAGE
The considerable lucrative salaries from overseas markets make it difficult for Filipino medical workers to stay put in the Philippines, even if it means they want to serve the country and be with their loved ones. A competitive basic salary and benefits package is a good invitation for many healthcare professionals to consider working locally.
2. OPPORTUNITIES FOR CAREER GROWTH
Working abroad poses unique challenges for healthcare professionals, one of them being away from their loved ones. Many workers will consider taking a local job offer if the career promises continuous learning and skills training, a clear career path, and recognition.
3. JOB SECURITY
Job insecurity remains to be one of the primary sources of anxiety for many Filipino healthcare workers, as the thought of being out of work any time is unacceptable for most. While some employers cut costs by hiring contractual staff, healthcare workers are more incentivized to accept offers from companies with permanent roles.
READ MORE: Curing the hiring hazards: How to convince Filipino medical professionals to work locally
Understanding the current scenario of our Filipino medical professionals is a crucial step for successful recruitment. For more powerful insights about the healthcare industry, Harness the data available on JobStreet's Laws of Attraction tool, and start surpassing the medical recruitment roadblocks.