In a basement of a run-down building on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, a class is going on. A group of young women who are mostly in their 20s, like Preetha Tomas, pay close attention to the lesson on pharmacology. Thomas, a nurse from Kerala, is exhausted but remains alert. She is aware that this class is her ticket to the American Dream.
Thomas attends the class to crack the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX). Passing the test will give her a nursing registration and allow her to work for U.S. hospitals. As part of the drill, classes are administered by Fortis HealthStaff, one the many staffing companies that not only prepare nurses for the exam free of cost but also ensure their placement in the United States.
But why move to the United States? “Here [India], the maximum starting salary one gets is only 15,000 rupees, but in the United States you get paid anywhere between $24 and $34 per hour. You even get double payment for extras shifts,” says Thomas, who is not alone in looking for greener pastures.
Sandeepa Sekhar, who works at the Max Hospital in Pitampura, is also determined to go abroad.
“The work culture is good at Max, and I have no problems with it, but salary remains an issue. You get paid only around 9,000 rupees after two years of work experience. The increment is also negligible,” she says.
If blue-chip Indian techies have become the hardware that Silicon Valley cannot do without, brisk, efficient nurses have hopped on the globalization bandwagon to become India’s next big export to Uncle Sam.
Industry sources say that, in 2007, there are 630,000 practicing nurses in India, of which 6,300 plan to go to the United States. Official figures indicate that there were 4,395 NCLEX-certified nurses last year, and that number is expected to reach 5,274 this year. In 2006, around 25,000 nurses left India to work in hospitals in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
No wonder, recruitment agencies like Fortis HealthStaff, Max Health Staff, and India International Technical Recruiters (IITR) are rushing to cash in on this brain drain. But how easy is it to land a job in the United States?
Sumanjit Chaudhry, CEO of Fortis HealthStaff, which opened last year in Delhi, says there is a huge supply-demand gap in the United States for nurses.
“It is estimated that the United States will need approximately a million nurses by 2020. This is the reason that we are planning to invest nearly a billion rupees on this business within the next two years,” he says.
Hefty salaries and better opportunities are not the only reasons that these nurses are enrolling themselves with recruitment agencies.
“A nurse goes with a green card to the United States. This means that she takes her husband and kids along with her. The pay structure is also very good, and a nurse can earn over $40 an hour after working two years there,” says Colonel Gurinder Singh, principal consultant for India International Technical Recruiters.
Renu Bisht, 25, for example, is waiting to clear the NCLEX test and fly to the United States with her husband, an IT professional. The United States also offers a chance for her to finish her education. “I want to earn also pursue my Bachelor of Science degree there. In India, its very difficult to do both,” says Bishit.
What makes health set-ups of the First World look for Indian nurses? Their proficiency with the English language, for one.
“The training they get in India meets requirements there. Plus, unlike nurses from other countries, they tend to stick to a job and settle down in the United States,” says Singh.
Not all countries are opening up. United Kingdom has recently made it mandatory for nurses to complete Overseas Nurses Programme before they are registered by the Nursing and Midwifery Council – a move that deters many from applying. Ireland is a different story.
“In 2004, we signed a contract with Healthcare Service Executive of Ireland. We have already placed 800 nurses [and will be] sending 1000 nurses by 2007,” says Singh.
For health professionals in India, the major frustration is the treatment they get in hospitals. Priyanka Rajput is a nurse at All India Institute of Medical Sciences, (AIIMS) but there is little pleasure she finds in work.
“You study so much to be a nurse, and at the end of the day, authorities make you do the work of a servant. We have to give bedpans and bed baths to the patients. This is definitely not our job,” she says. Rajput is also studying for the NCLEX.
The staffing companies are a big help for the aspiring nurses. Once they enroll for a five-month-long course, they get to brush up on their reading, writing, speaking and listening skills. Cultural orientation classes prepare them for the changes they should expect. The process – clearing the exam and immigration formalities – usually takes nearly two years. Once a woman reaches the United States, the companies who have connections to Indian firms help them adjust to the life there.
But doesn’t the thought of going to a strange country intimidate these young women a little?
“No,” says Thomas. “When I came to Delhi five years ago from Kerela, I couldn’t even understand Hindi properly, but I managed. I’m sure I’ll adjust there too.”
