KUWAIT CITY, June 23: A parallel workforce is emerging in Kuwait due to the growing demand-supply gap in the healthcare sector, say concerned sources.

The Arab Times was probing the issue after being notified recently by an expatriate about unqualified people working as home nurses in many Kuwaiti houses attending to the sick and the old.

“For a person to work as a nurse in Kuwait, his or her certificates will have to be duly vetted in addition to passing an exam. However, these self-appointed nurses don’t go through this vetting process and can put the life of the patients in danger. Some of them may not even be duly trained.”

One of the sources noted that most of these freelancing nurses are qualified nurses in their home countries, “but may have failed the exams here. Even if you pass the exam, there is a long wait before the actual recruitment and the candidates freelance as home nurses to make some money on the side.”
As to why the nurses are desperate to earn, the sources revealed that to land a nursing job in the ministry, the candidates shell out huge sums of money to recruitment agents. “There are kickbacks going to people at various levels in the recruitment process.

“Nurses pay around KD 3000 simply to get enlisted for the exam. That’s a huge gamble, as not everyone on the list gets recruited. Some pay up to KD 5000.”

The sources added that fresh nurses are under pressure to earn because they may have taken a loan from financiers to raise the kickback money. “If they get the job, they can repay the loan within a year, but otherwise it becomes very difficult. That’s when they are forced to work illegally.

“Those who don’t pass the exam take No.20 visa and work as home nurses. The worst part is that this underground workforce has spawned so much that even runaway maids now work as home nurses.
“The authenticity of the credentials of more than 300,000 residents during the last census has been called into question by the ministry.” The source was referring to the huge potential for illegal workforce in Kuwait.

“The maids are trained in the ways of Kuwaiti households from their experience as domestic helps. They make use of this knowledge and their knowledge of Arabic to pass off as home nurses. The employers are comfortable to have such a home nurse, and don’t pay too much attention to their credentials.”
Another reason for this thriving underground workforce is the pressure on hospitals. The healthcare sector is too stretched to provide nurses for all the sick people requiring home nurses. The demand is heavy.

Further sources said that people employ home nurses like employing maids, through personal contacts and not through authorized recruiting agencies. “This has aggravated the situation.

“A majority of these illegal home nurses come from Ardiya, Rabiah, Riggae, Salmiya, Mangaf, Abbassiya, Khaitan and Farwanya. They have private transportations to shuttle them between their houses and workplaces, showing how an entire parallel economy is evolving out of this malpractice.”