US-based Pinoy nurses angered by Cynthia Villar's statement

Over the weekend, social media was abuzz over a statement perceived to be an attack on Filipino nurses. The statement was made by a former lawmaker who is vying for a seat at the Philippine Senate.

In an electoral forum on Philippine TV, former Las Pinas City representative, now Philippine Senatorial candidate Cynthia Villar answered a question about why she sided with the owners of shut-down nursing schools and not with the nursing student.

"Actually hindi naman kailangan ng nurse ay matapos ng BSN or Bachelor of Science in Nursing. Kasi itong ating mga nurses, gusto lang nilang maging room nurse, sa America or other countries, parang mag-aalaga. Hindi naman sila kailangan maging ganoon kagaling," Villar said.

Filipino nurses took to social media to show their anger on the candidate's statement, including the Filipina nurse recently honored by President Obama during his State the Union address.

"Ang taas na ng pagtingin ng mundo sa atin, naitaas na natin eh, tapos binababa naman niya. Talagang na hurt talaga ang mga nurses, ang sabi ko nga everybody has their own mind, masasabi niya kahit anong gusto niyang sabihin pero tayo meron tayo may magagawa tayo, ang dapat nating gawin, yung mga ganung tao hindi natin nilalagay sa pwesto," said Menchu Sanchez, who was honored by Obama for saving critically ill babies in neo-natal ICU at the height of superstorm Sandy.

Other Filipino nurses in Jersey City said they came to America not to become what Villar calls a "room nurse" but to be professional nurses who can move up the ladder of success

"Yes, nagpupunas kami ng mga pwet ng mga pasyente, naglilinis kami ng mga sugat at lahat ng ganyan pero ang masasabi ko lang sana hindi siya magkasakit ng sobra sobra, dahil alam ko dadaan siya sa mga kamay ng nurses. Sana lang marealize niya na yung sinabi niya mali, kasi it takes so much to be a nurse, it was too degrading, it was too insulting," said Dez Choi, a Filipino nurse in New Jersey.

"Nowadays marami nang roles na ina-assume ang mga nurses especially Filipino nurses. I think we have broken through - na mainstream na tayo, like me personally I'm taking my MSN ngayon, my masters. I've been here almost 6 years so hindi totoo na puro lang kami bedside kasi merong nasa management na," said nurse Maridel Maulawin from Chicago.

Villar earlier has apologized to the Philippine Nurses Association for her remarks, saying she had no intention to belittle anyone--especially the nursing profession.

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Obama praises Filipina nurse in State of the Union address

MANILA, Philippines - US President Barack Obama praised a Filipina nurse, who is considered one of the heroes of the Hurricane Sandy disaster, in his State of the Union address before the joint session of Congress in Washington D.C., Tuesday evening (Wednesday morning, Manila time).

In his speech, Obama mentioned Menchu Sanchez, a nurse at New York University’s Langone Medical Center, as an example to all Americans.

"We were sent here to look out for our fellow Americans in the same way they look out for one another every single day, usually without fanfare all across the country. We should follow their example," he said,.

"We should follow the example of a New York City nurse named Menchu Sanchez. When Hurricane Sandy plunged her hospital into darkness, she wasn't thinking about how her own home was faring. Her mind was on the 20 precious newborns in her care and the rescue plan she devised that kept them all safe," the US president said.

Sanchez was seated between First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joe Biden, during the State of the Union address.

When President Obama mentioned Sanchez, the First Lady was seen nudging Sanchez and smiling at her.

Sanchez was invited by Obama for her role in saving 20 at-risk infants during the Hurricane Sandy disaster that devastated large parts of New York and New Jersey last year.

She devised a plan to transport 20 at-risk infants at the Langone Medical Center to intensive care units around the city.  She organized the nurses and doctors to carefully carry the babies down eight flights of stairs with only cell phones to light the way. 

Even as her own home was flooding, Sanchez thought only of protecting the babies in her care, the White House said. 

Sanchez was born, raised, and educated in the Philippines and she immigrated to the United States in the 1980s.  

She has worked as a nurse in New York for more than 25 years, and has been at NYU since 2010. 

Sanchez currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children, both of whom are in college. - With report from Rodney Jaleco, ABS-CBN News

source: abs-cbnnews.com

Meet the Filipina nurse honored by Obama

WASHINGTON, D.C. -  Filipina nurse Menchu Sanchez will get a rare vantage view of President Obama’s State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Tuesday evening (Wednesday morning, Manila time).

Sanchez, a nurse at New York University’s Langone Medical Center, will sit at the balcony as one of the special guests of First Lady Michelle Obama.

She is being hailed as one of the heroes of the Hurricane Sandy disaster that devastated large parts of New York and New Jersey last year.

She devised a plan to transport 20 at-risk infants at the Langone Medical Center to intensive care units around the city.  She organized the nurses and doctors to carefully carry the babies down eight flights of stairs with only cell phones to light the way. 

Even as Menchu’s own home was flooding, she thought only of protecting the babies in her care, the White House said. 

Menchu was born, raised, and educated in the Philippines and she immigrated to the United States in the 1980s. 

She has worked as a nurse in New York for more than 25 years, and has been at NYU since 2010. 

Menchu currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children, both of whom are in college.

The other guests of the First Lady include Alan Aleman, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico City.

In high school, Alan watched his friends come of age – driving around town with their new licenses and earning some extra cash from their summer jobs at the mall, knowing that his status prevented him from those activities.

But when he heard about news that the Obama Administration was going to provide Deferred Action for undocumented youth like him to emerge from the shadows, he was one of the first to sign up, the White House said.

Alan is in his second year at the College of Southern Nevada.  He’s studying to become a doctor and he hopes to join the Air Force.  Alan is currently working at Hermandad Mexicana, where he is in charge of final review for DACA applications. 

Also with the First Lady are Cleopatra and Nathaniel Pendleton, whose daughter Hadiya was murdered on January 29, 2013, when she was shot and killed in Harsh Park on Chicago’s South Side.

Hadiya had participated in President Obama’s public inaugural celebration on January 21, 2013.  The honor student and band majorette at King College Prep High School has become another symbol of the victims of gun violence in the country. 

Mrs. Obama attended Hadiya’s memorial service last Saturday.

source: abs-cbnnews.com