Data from National Nurses United (NNU) suggests that while only 4% of US nurses are Filipinos, some 30% of the nearly 200 RNs who have died from COVID-19 are Filipino Americans. NNU believes that overall, nurses are primarily endangered by PPE shortages and restrictive guidelines limiting access to tests, but Filipino nurses tend to face additional risks.
The odds of being exposed to the virus tend to be higher for Filipino nurses and healthcare workers. One reason for their vulnerability is based on sheer numbers, particularly in California and New York. One fifth of California nurses are Filipino, and according to a ProPublica analysis of 2017 US Census data, 25% of the Filipinos living in New York work in the health care industry. The types of jobs they take also increase the likelihood of exposure. A 2018 Philippine Nurses Association of America survey (cited by ProPublica) found a large proportion of respondents working in bedside and critical care, and a StatNews report noted that “because they are most likely to work in acute care, medical/surgical, and ICU nursing, many ‘FilAms’ are on the front lines of care for Covid-19 patients.” The StatNews story added that Filipino frontliners often “work extra shifts to support their families and send money back to relatives in the Philippines. Those extra hours, and extra exposure to patients, mean higher risk.”
Roy Taggueg, of the Bulosan Center for Filipino Studies at University of California, Davis recently told NBC News that in addition to the low rates of testing in their communities, Filipino nurses are also more likely to reside in multi-generational households, which makes them and their families more vulnerable to the virus. He explained, “One person might be going out, but they definitely are bringing everything back with them when they come home from work, because they’re forced to work out there on the front line. We’re talking about their parents, their kids, all of that. It’s a very particular position to be in, and it’s one that I think is unique to the Filipino and Filipino American community.”
While many nurses have been speaking out about the lack of tests and inadequate PPE, Filipino nurses usually find it more comfortable to remain silent. Cris Escarrilla at the San Diego chapter of the Philippine Nurses Association of America remarked, “We don’t really complain that much. We are able to adapt and we just want to get things done.” Zenei Cortez, president of National Nurses United and the California Nurses Association acknowledged this, saying “Culturally, we don’t complain. We do not question authority. We are so passionate about our profession and what we do, sometimes to the point of forgetting about our own welfare.” However, Cortez thinks that the younger generation of Filipino nurses seem to be finding their voices: “What I am seeing now is that my colleagues who are of Filipino descent are starting to speak out. We love our jobs, but we love our families too.”
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