We need our people to come back home — Health Minister
There has been a call for health professionals originally from the BVI to return home to assist in the current COVID-19 crisis.
Health Minister Carvin Malone made the call while appearing on the Virgin Islands Party‘s (VIP) Let’s Talk radio programme earlier this week.
“We need persons trained and we need our people to basically come back home so we have to look in terms of creating a programme,” Minister Malone said.
He said the territory will continue to be challenged especially since the United States of America is able to offer greater salaries and more incentives for healthcare workers.
“We have come to know that taking up your salaries alone would not do it because America prints money so they can always up yours another 20, 30, 40 percent,” Malone said.
Malone also made a special appeal for other nationals to come to the territory to provide healthcare services.
“The BVI is not a bad place to live, it’s a great place to live so we will have to work with all of the disciplines, we will have to work with the Ministry of Education, we will have to work with the Ministry of Labour and Immigration to make sure that we can offer incentives in terms of people who would like to put their roots here, offer their services here and they are not here just because they have some US dollars to make, but they’re here because they would like to make here, the Virgin Islands, their home,” he said.
He added that it is always a terrible thing when officials are looking afield to bring people in while persons here are not offered the same incentives.
“So we have to make sure that we get our own people who are here to feel as if they are a full part of the medical system. We have to get our people here to feel as if, well look, ‘I feel at home’,” he added.
“It’s not only strangers who should feel at home, but people from the BVI should feel at home also,” the minister said.
Malone stated that robots cannot replace a number of disciplines within the health industry and said this is where the territory continues to be challenged in terms of maintaining and keeping its people.
He said officials need to do whatever they can to encourage people to be trained so they are working with the Education Department and the local H Lavity Stoutt Community College to have the nursing programme returned along with other initiatives to achieve this outcome.
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No,no no
Don’t come back yet, open air garbage burning ? today, wait a bit
Come home to get victimize from you guys. Why did you send home the acting director of the hospital and the HR manager in the middle of a pandemic? And now claiming you are short staff! Does that make any sense? Then you are telling people to come home? What are you smoking papa?
SOME OF THESE PEOPLE AT THIS INSTITUTION IS ALLERGIC TO MONEY ,ONCE THEY SEE MONEY THEY MOST STEAL MY GOD WHAT A SHAME
To come home with a Master’s Degree and experience to be paid $36,000 and in the USA we can make over $60,000 plus and more for our degree and experience. Please get out of here.
Besides when you come home with a degree and experience, you have these old retired hags in positions that feels threatened and victimize us. We will stay in the USA.
The medical cabal has a tight grip on salaries for doctors, nurses and pharmacists
AMEN!!! I second that 1000000% Also, they do not hire nor pay commensurate with skills, qualifications or experience. It’s all about who you know and who they believe are affiliated with their party. Even some of their OWN supporters are kicked to the curb. it should never be about politics though.
Yes, some non-BVIslanders may accept your offers based on conditions in their own countries and I am not hating, because we find ourselves in the same position, that is why we opt to stay in the US, hence you cannot expect us to come home for peanuts, then can’t even build a 2 X 4 house after we retire. Cost of living at home is ridiculously high. FIX your issues first, then maybe we would be more inclined to consider the offer to return.
If you come home you may be able to help fix some of the issues.
NOT WITH THIS PRESENT MANAGEMENT , MAYBE IF THEY SWITCH BACK TO GOVERNMENT
they had no call putting them out there on their own before fixing them
You and Wheatley need to stop. One saying person’s here need the jobs that’s why they are not processing the permits, now you asking for BV Islanders to return. One can’t get his act together while the other adding more pressures to what is already there. You are not serious, what you really smoking?
Andrew pick the wrong team
Come home for ayo to knock them about?
I hope none of them are getting knocked about abroad.
EVEN DOH THEY GET KNOCK ABOUT , THE MONIES WORTH IS THERE AND WORTH IT AT THE END OF THE MONTH
Can we get some robots to replace the whole VIP. Asking for myself and friends.
Signed
Ms. Fed up
would we notice?
Whilst the ideal would be for BVIslanders to hold all available jobs, it is better to have people who want to be here.
Also, his statements are just so ignorant ““We have come to know that taking up your salaries alone would not do it because America prints money so they can always up yours another 20, 30, 40 percent,” Malone said. So ignorant.
It’s obvious where he was educated. Dah
I use to be a nurse for BVIHSA and during my experience working for this organization was sometimes challenging, which is expected everywhere. What made things heartbreaking is that I never cared for the money, I just wanted to serve my country, instead I was treated as a tool just for use. Wherever we are from ALL nurses and Doctors need to be respected by the institution they are employed with. I gave my years and my heart and I didn’t even get an ounce of respect. I will not come back to my hometown to work as a nurse again especially to be used because there is a shortage and risk my life for a country who don’t care. I am too sorry, I love me more. Good Luck BVIHSA.
I AGREE WITH YOU NURSE STAY WHERE U ARE AND WHERE U ARE HAPPY
When you live abroad you make more money, you spend more money so it works out to come home.
Then you go home.
born abl
HE IS A MAD DUDE WITH NO SENCE, YOU CANNOT PAY THOSE THAT ARE HERE WHO ARE WORKING SO HARD ,IS TROUBLE FOR THEM TO GET THIER LITTLE BENEFITS AND U ASKING FOR YOUR PEOPLE TO RETURN WHO ARE GETTING PAID PROPERLY WITH ALL BENEFITS , HAVE U EVER ASK THE BVIHSA IF THIER STAFF IS GETTING INCREMENT , WHERE HAS IT GONE TOO AND WHO HAS INHERRITTED IT , FROM SINCE AFTER HURRICANE STAFF IS STILL WAITING FOR UNIFORMS MATRON SAID WAS ORDERED,WHEN U WORK PUBLIC HOLIDAYS 12 HOURS THEY ONLY PAY U 8 HRS REGULAR PAY NOT EVEN DOUBLE PAY AS STIPULATED BY LAW, WHERE IS THE RETROACTIVE PAY FOR THE PRESENT STAFF,NOT ONE CENT ,BVIHSA CANNOT FIND MONEY TO BUY UNIFORMS FOR STAFF BUT THEY CAN FIND TO PAY FOR THE HOTEL AT OLD FLOW THOUSANDS PER A MONTH DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENCE SIR ,SLEEP AND REPLY AGAIN MAYBE U MIGHT THINK DIFFERENTLY ,I WOULDNT ENCOURAGE ANY ONE TO COME TO WORK HERE BEFORE A TOTAL OVERHALL IS DONE TO THIS INSTITUTION FOR THIS MATTER I THINK GOVERMENT SHOULD TAKE BACK THE MANAGEMENT OF THIS INSTITUTION BEFORE TOTAL COLLAPSE,,,,, IT MUST BE DONE REALLY QUICK BECAUSE RIGHT NOW ITS ON AUTO PILOT SO PREPARE FOR CRASH , THEM STEAL ALL THE MONEY AND CANT FIND TO COMPENSATE PRESENT STAFF, MR MARLONE WHAT U ARE SAYING IS ONLY HOT STALE OLD AIR YOUR RELEASEING ,STOP COVERING UP AND IMPRESSING THE PUBLIC THINGE EH RIGHT AND EH LOOKING BRIGHT DOWN THERE , WHO IS CAPTAINING THAT BOAT MY GOD , TREAT YOUR STAFF GOOD SHOW THEM APPRECIATION AND WELCOME THEM ,PLACE IS NOT BAD BUT MANAGEMENT SUCKS TO THE BONE
Tom Jones,
Here is a very issue I have with your post.
If you work 12 hours, you should get paid for twelve hours. It is your right to be paid according to the time of hours work. According to UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 23, 1 & 2)
1) “Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protect against unemployment”
2) “Everyone , without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work”
There is an old saying ” Time is Money” it is a fair exchange and it should be respected at all times. If you agree with your employer to work 12 hours but only paid 8 hours. This is the mistake of a foolish person. Let me explain. Remember time is money, each day your employer is gaining 4 hours from your skills, energy +time in one week, he/she gains28 hours, and in one month 112 hours per month in one year the gains on hours is an estimated 1344 hours. Now you get my idea in calculation, if the hours are paid at 15 $ at least calculation you are now out of pocket 20,160.00K for one year and calculate it by 5 years 100,800.00K therefore you have been cheated financially by the authorities that employs you.
In the capacity of nurses, doctors, radiologist and so forth, never negotiate for less from what other hospital are paying, your skills are needed throughout the world and you should never settle for less, you have the power to open your own business become your own entreprenuer so do not settle for less. Go to payscale.com,glassdoor.com and check out what the USA is paying for your skills. A Pediatric doctor is paid 220K per year + perks. If they GOV cannot paid this, then make it up with the perks, housing, telephone, duty free, car, etc.
Now and in the future the medical field will be in want those who trained their people in this field will be the one to hold the wealth and health of their nation.
BVI is a nice place but the people are not. Especially the ones in power. BVI love only exists if you are needed to vote for these crooks. Malone has just proved how ignorant your people are. You make everyone from outside this country feel unwelcome regardless what they bring to these islands. I know an expat family been here running a business and helping local kids for years and they been treated like they do a crime trying to get a stamp in their passport. Your islands are beautiful but the spoilt ignorant people that call the place home are ruining the country!!! When we start treating people as equals then we can all move forward. BVI are a long way away from this! You mention you don’t want people here for money but your very own people won’t return home because they get more abroad!! Is this guy really a Minister!!! I guess you only need to pay of 1 thousand people to get there!!
Good luck nice honest BVIlanders, all 5 of you!! That’s all I know. The rest of you are an embarrassment to the human race. You are no better than the slave masters that brought your ancestors here!! You treat outsiders like animals and worse than slaves!! Wake up before it’s too late and all the good people are gone!
Dont come home they treat you like crap