Canada has a nursing shortage, as provinces turn to the Philippines to fill positions.

Many Canadian experts have said that Filipino nurses are essential to Canada's healthcare system, making up an increasing percentage of regulated nurses in Canada.

According to the best available data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), about four percent of regulated nurses working in Canada in 2021 graduated from the Philippines.

Many countries with a chronic nursing shortage are competing to recruit nurses in the Philippines.

Ivy Bourgeault, a professor in the Department of Social and Cultural Studies at the University of Ottawa, noted that this is a smaller number of Filipinos, as it does not represent Filipinos trained as nurses but who are working in other healthcare roles such as caregivers. She also leads a group of health experts called the Canadian Health Workforce Network.

Recruiters, politicians, university staff, and family members often encourage nurses to leave the Philippines for better opportunities.

However, Canadian officials traveled to the Philippines last year in hopes of addressing the nursing staff shortage in Canada, which has led to the closure of emergency rooms, delays in surgeries, and long waits for patients in emergency departments.

This is an approach that Canadian politicians have continuously resorted to since the 1960s.

While Canadian politicians speak of the success of their recruitment efforts in the Philippines, very few details have been disclosed about how these nurses are being recruited abroad. CBC News spent weeks in the Philippines in June to learn more about the individuals involved in recruiting Filipino nurses to Canada, how they do it, and to understand why nurses are forced to leave.

Last year, government and health leaders from Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, and Manitoba traveled to the Philippines to recruit nurses.

Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson stated in a press release before her departure that this mission is an important step to highlight all we have to offer, to attract new talent and add capacity, and to contribute to our future healthcare workforce.

Several Canadian provinces have traveled to the Philippines to recruit nurses.

British Columbia and Nova Scotia also sent government and health officials to the island nation last year to speak with nursing schools and Filipino politicians about nursing education and accreditation documents. Alberta signed an agreement with the Philippines last year to encourage more nurses to come.