Ozzy queries lack of local medical staff
(CNS): The new health minister has already pointed to one of the many issues he hopes to tackle in his ministry as he toured the departments now under his area of responsibility following his appointment. During a tour of the hospital in George Town last week Osbourne Bodden commented on the apparent shortage of locals administering healthcare to patients. Stating that the provision of health services offered a rewarding and lucrative career for Caymanians, he promised that he would address this area in the future. Bodden also said that he would be looking closely at local employment in his other areas of responsibility as he gets to know his new ministry.
Bodden is now responsible for Health Regulatory Services, Mosquito Research & Control Unit (MRCU), Department of Environmental Health (both Grand Cayman and Cayman Brac offices), National Gallery, Department of Sports, Youth Services Unit, Cadet Corps, National Museum, Cayman National Cultural Foundation (CNCF), Cayman Islands Museum, as well as Faith Hospital in Cayman Brac.
Expressing his gratitude to the staff at the Health Services Authority (HSA), which was the first stop on the tour, Bodden said that visiting the hospital really drove home the level of commitment and hard work of staff members. He said he was very encouraged by the progress being made and the dedication and professionalism shown.
“I am confident that you will continue the great work and I look forward to getting to know you more closely, as we provide quality services and programmes for the people of these islands,” he told hospital workers.
Category: Health
I am proud of the wonderful Caymanian doctors who are saving lives, not just here but around the world. The likes of Dr Neely Panton, Dr Sidney Ebanks, Dr Stevenson Tomlinson, Dr Pomarez, Dr Glidden, Dr Elisabeth McLaughlin, Dr Gerald Smith are the names that come to mind but there are also many more. And there are other qualified Caymanians in other medical positions who are doing great jobs. So, dont talk crap about Caymanians capabilities. All they need are opportunities
No-one in the world gets more opportunity than Caymanians in Cayman. If you can't make it here, you were never going to make it. Many who would never make it anywhere else get lucky here because being sub-average, having the right passport and having a relative on an immigration board are enough for a professional career.
You forgot to add "except expats". Qualified Caymanians are often kicked to kerb while fast-talking foreigners are promoted and handsomely remunerated even where they don't possess the qualifications.
Not in my profession they don't.
It appears that in my friend's professions they do not either.
It is strange that several persons, all growing up on several continents, speaking different first languages, who all differ culturally all reach the same conclusion.
So which particular field are we talking about here?
The generalising on this page is wrong – I don't think that Caymanians do not want to work, I think that they don't want to work in health care or the sciences. I know that 90% of my high school graduating class went on to do one of three things: tourism, finance, or insurance. Our youth are not multi-faceted in their academic pursuits and its mostly because the government and our education system does not encourage people to think outside these major areas. By all means, I agree in investing in the youth of the island, and definitely agree with providing scolarships and financial grants to students who will return to Cayman and work in our major economic areas – but we need more than that to thrive as a country. You want to know why other Caribbean countries are so well known for producing great doctors even though they are far poorer than we are? Because the governments invest in the training and education of their health care professionals. How is it that we have so many absolutely amazing Jamaican nurses and doctors working in Cayman and yet we constantly look down our noses at their country? We think we're better than them and yet we put our lives in their hands at the end of the day.
Stimulate the minds of our high school students and turn them onto new paths. Not everyone has to do accounting, insurance, banking.. Broaden your horizons and bring something worth while to your country. Forge a new path and branch out. But none of this will ever happen if the government continues to provide for a streamlined education leading to one of three possible outcomes.
While I agree with a number of your comments, I have to disagree that caymanians are not interested in other areas in the medical field. Too many people have been discouraged by the establishment, in that they are told there is no funding for them but their very own nationals are chosen and given the golden oppurtunity to make the giant step to benefit from funding that should be available for caymanians. Those who are qualified and may be employed are pulled over the coals and sidelined, by those who are always looking to pull their very own in through the back door, to squeeze the caymanian out.
It is time for us to work together and stop the concerted effort by the foreign national to keep the caymanian out of a job.
My graduating high school class in Cayman was 70-something people. You want to know how many people went on to do sciences/health related studies? Four. I'm one of them.
Raw bell curve analysis means that any single school year of Caymanians would produce at most a dozen or so decent lawyers or doctors. The same as a population of 30,000 anywhere, with perhaps a slightly lower end result because of a terrible local education system. So to imagine there is some conspiracy going on is a joke.
In the 1970s the population was more like 16,000-20,000.
I'm not saying there is a conspiracy, I'm saying that the industries on the island, government available scholarships, work experience programs and academic paths all point the kids on the island in the same general direction: finance, insurance, banking or tourism.
So in this way, it is a lot harder for the student who wants to pursue the sciences or engineering, or health care. The scholarships aren't available, or are preferentially selected to benefit those who are interested in marketing, public relations, accounting, etc..
When exactly do you think the last time our island had a population of 30,000 people? We're essentially double that now. Also, I'm sure that if you broke down the statistics, for a country as wealthy as we are, and as developed as we are, I'm sure the percentage of Caymanians who hold not only a degree but a professional qualification or degree (as you would need to become a doctor or lawyer) is actually lower than countries with similar GDPs/GNPs/HDIs.
Too many people have become discouraged by the establishment? Caymanians who work in the HSA or health field feel as though they are raked over the coals? You should try and be an expat and work for the HSA. I have lived in Cayman for 11 years and I have permanent residency, and still I get treated as though I don't deserve the job. That I weaseled my way in (I've been working as a nurse at the same hospital for 7 years) and squeezed someone else out of a job.
No one is actively trying to squeeze someone out of a job because they are Caymanian, but the same cannot be said for expats. How many expats – properly qualified, professional, well educated people – do you know or have heard about that have lost their job to someone who is not as qualified and not as reliable? I know I have heard of many, many cases in different businesses all over the island. I find that particularly sad. It seems so discriminatory and unwelcoming for an island like ours. An island where we do nothing but preach how Godly we are, and how founded in faith our history is – seems very un-Christian to me.
The "concerted effort by foreign nationals to keep Caymanians out of a job" that you're talking about is imagined. The only way someone can prevent someone else from getting a job is by making themselves more desireable to the employer than their competition. If an expat is more qualified and has earned a position, why should they be removed from that position (and be discriminated against) just because they are non-Caymanian? In an industry like health care, are you truly comfortable saying that you would be happy putting your life in the hands of somene who is less qualified but Caymanian? I think the answer from most people would be no.
Maybe the real issue here is how to improve the level of competition among Caymanian candidates. Provide for better and more extensive education. Allow students to undertake courses of study that cater to alternative medicines or healing. If we, as an island, decide to broaden our scope of practice starting at the educational level, then we would all be better for it.
Don't get me wrong, I love this country. I would not have stayed here for 11 years if I didn't. I love my job, and I love how rewarding it is to be a nurse. I have raised my children here, and they were born at George Town Hospital just like most Caymanians are. I have made this place my home, and I certainly hope not to leave any time soon; but there are times when I have felt unwelcome simply because I am not a local… and the sad part is that I don't remember it being this way when I first moved here.
I hope that Cayman continues to move forward. I hope we can find ways to give our younger generations better and broader educations. I hope the government can find a way to stimulate more Caymanians to branch out from the traditional career paths seen on the island.
If my comments are incorrect, then could you enlighten me, as to how so few caymanians are employed at the HSA and the adminstration is overloaded with who? I will leave it there.
Perhaps the administration is overloaded with people who deserve to be there? People who are properly qualified and competent at their job. Just because someone is Caymanian does not automatically guarantee them a job, especially if they're not properly qualified (which happens all too often). Instead of trying to blame everything on external issues like expats and governments and work permits how about you just accept the fact that there are not many Caymanians who go into health care, and even fewer who stay there.
The same thing goes for the domestic workers and manual labourers on the island. You think that Philippinos and Jamaicans are preferentially hired over Caymanians to work on construction sites, clean the hotel rooms and schools around the island, and collect our garbage? No. More Jamaicans and Philippinos work in those lines of employment because they are the ones who apply. They are the groups of people who will stay and work there. Caymanians would rather be unemployed and collect money from the government than ever work a garbage collection job, or domestic worker job.
We have a medical school here in cayman, the problem is that this school only offers a scholarship for the first two years, theory. Not when you go to the US or UK for clinical rotations. I had a friend who applied and did she didn’t get the scholarship because the school only gives one a year. She looked into it even more no caymanian student attend that year… Also when looking at the cost it was cheaper to go to the UK were she is now. Also the medical school here has dropped in its ratings.
This school is privately owned, and make large profits. Not giving back to the community as far as I am concerned if you have a caymanian lets say is 18yrs, the med school should sponsor this student to go to the UK to do a per med program, this program is a year long (cost 9k) then sponsor the student to come back to cayman for 2 years, really no cost but a seat in a lecture hall (so say 5k for exams and books). Now student goes to do clinically in US, the meld school quotes 30k per year ( you know there is a profit in that) for 2 years. Student graduates and passes last exams as a GP. If said student wants to specialize the gov can provide sponsorship from this point.
Mr. Ozzy look into this school and the profits they make, you give them everything duty free and they give nothing back to the community or young students…. Make them pay for the profits they have made using our island.
On a final note our family friend will graduate next year and will hopefully return to cayman once got her MD..
If Caymanians want to work in health care, then they should do it. Get trained and do it. There is no conspiracy.
But is it not so much easier to say there is a conspiracy and then never try?
People talk crap about Caymanians being lazy, unemployable, uneducated. Maybe that is why half of jobs available are not even publically advertised for us to see. Employers go straight thru these recruitment agencies who have foreign links and get expats hired in no time. It is more than a pathetic excuse to hear foolishness about Caymanians not wanting to work when every year we have so many coming back from Universities with applaudable degrees and are still unable to find work, without them having inside “Connections”. It is also pathetic to read some of these comments written by Caymanians, who have no other purpose in life than to step on one another to get ahead. Osbourne is a Caymanian, who the people have elected to serve us, Caymanians. Why anyone would have a problem with what he is aiming to do isbeyond me. Expats come here with false documents and they are praised and pushed to the forefront in everything. Caymanians apply for a job and every little detail about their past is dug up to try to prevent them from getting a job. Sadly enough the problem in this island is that no one wants to see another living good.
Sadly, the generalisations within your comment discredit the valid observations you have made.
This post needed to be in all CAPS!
CNS: Comments made all in capital letters are automatically deleted.
You may have a point. Clearly the hospital cannot currently treat delusional people…something should be done. Perhaps employ those kind of people and that will make all the other customers the nutters?
There is a major difference between caymanians needing the jobs and actually being qualified for them, you cannot give jobs to someone who is not qualified for them… YES I agree caymanians should have the first right to every job BUT half of them that are unemployed is because is because they do not want to work and even when they do get a job they do not carry themselves in an appropriate manner to keeps these jobs !
Qualified is not enough. Hiring the best should be the standard unless we are aspiring to mediocrity.
is that why you are here, because you couldnt get hired in your own country? So what should Caymanians do if they are up to the standard? go to another country with less educated people and treat them like shit, like what many expats do here… weird logic
I came here for the easy money, stash it and go home. You don't like it? I don't care. Oh yes, and to flee my creditors until the debts were statute barred.
Don’t feed the troll
Can it be trolling if it is the truth?
Let the truth be told. Caymanians are aware of this, hence the limits. No one leaves home if it was so favorable – only genuine missionaries.
This is the reason why caymanians hate expats now. It is this blatant attitude why friendly people have turned against quite a few of you. We have many caymanians out of jobs, and to see and hear expats saying and acting like this is an insult to injury. I for one will foreve try to employ locals. Many of you expats have blatantly disrespected our culture, hospitallity, and kindness for your own sake. You have come to our country and put us down to the very bottom and question why we have anything against you.
Our government is one problem in which I agree with. The government relies on permits way too much, but they attitude that caymanians have against expats is due to the attitude the expats come here with and display openly to us.
Many expats who are NOTHING in their own country, have for some reason or next decided that they are soemwhat important here. Their blatant attack to have someone fired, or verbally, racially abuse can be heard almost everyday when they are not please with service. This might I add, comes from the majority of UK expats who live in a class system and believe that some people are better than other. I refuse to see cayman come to this.
It WILL only a matter of time before caymanians have gotten tired of this from foriegn nationals and try to take back their home. watch and see
Looking forward to it. When is this take back scheduled and will there be free food?
Get real. The problems start with the entitlement attitude of some Caymanians. There is no Caymanian who is able to work and wants to work who is unemployed.
We are available next Tuesday for a couple of hours in the morning if you need help in dismantling the entire colonial apparatus.
We stand with you Brother.
Yes, fleeing from your creditors in both directions. We know.
Thank you for proving the comment right. And what you should do is go out and get the education and training so you are qualified just like the other guy. You don't have to leave your country. Or what is the real reason you can't? Maybe your government can help you fix that if you make them. No one wants Caymanians to fail.
if you have read many comments before, you would have noted that there are MANY caymanians that are more than qualified for positions, yet they are turned down. While I can understand that there will be people who are qualified but do not fit theposition, there is an unpoken truth that many postions are given to foreign nationals that are less equipt. Why? well yes I agree with the fact that our government is partly to blame, and many people acknowledge that, but when the government does quote and make provisions to help resolve the issues, foreigners cry foul and protest that they are taking their money and what not. So why would any caymanian, after seeing this attitude think that any foreign national would want to see locals move forward?
There are many cases, where locals are held down or pushed out of companies, only to be replaced by mangers family, friend or spouse, How is this fair to any of us? There are many caymanian that have come back form universities that are without jobs. How would you feel if this happened to you, and your work force is primarily occupied by expats? Many of you expats are right here in cayman writing about how caymanians are lazy that is why we dont have jobs. Yet in contrast to your opinions, you are here working in another country instead of your own, why werent you able to get a job there? lazyness?
07.49…major chip on your shoulder buddy…in financial sector we are here because there was no one else qualified to do it. Most of us can do our jobs in our own countries, however it is much more pleasant to live here. My application took 4 months and was properly vetted for sure. However my work is rare in the world, so not surprised there were no Cayman experts. If you feel you are being treated like shit, it is probably because of that chip on your shoulder…I work with many Caymanians who are up to and above standard..and I know if the company could find more with the right attitude they would find as many as they could to replace us expensive expats…the saving in fees alone would be phenominal. But with your "entitled" attitude which comes through loud and clear, I am not surprised you are struggling. Everyone, including us, has to earn our living, not just get it because we are local. You would not last 5 minutes in any other country with that attitude, so why would you here?
What an idiotic comment. You clearly have no clue how it works hun. In reality, the logic couldn't be any weirder than your own here… SMH
so explain how it works then nah dumbass
In terms of logic, if standards of health care are to be maximized then yes, the correct response to the situation would be to ” go to another country with less educated people”
Caymankind.
How quailfied are the domestic helpers who are bank clerks and also employed at the HSA?
How many Caymanians want those jobs (excluding the drunks, the junkies and the criminals).
Dont you see what is happening. Granny brings Papa, Papa brings Uncle, Uncle brings sister,Sister brings Daughter, mDaughter brings brother and the list goes on. Not a ting bout qualifications. Gone is the days when we had staff such as Vernice Hawkins, Ruth Mclaughlin, Nurse Howard from Ozzies District, Nurse Janice Martinez not to mention the good cook Mr Carl Gordons mother, Ms Hannah Hooker and those good ole cleaning ladies from West Bay. Then our Office was comprised with the most courteous staff such as Mrs Yvonne Miller, the lab ms Ivy Good, Betty Ebanks, and Rebecca Ebanks. It was certainly a much better hospital. The building dosent make a better place, it is the staff. All these folks that I mentioned are Caymanians. I forgot to mention a lovely lady who was the late Cardinald Dacosta sister and Mazie Watler. Certainly people of their calibre can be found again. Just take an exmple from Salomie Scott, always willing to assist .
If that is true, it is Cayman Immigration who is responsible…which means it is probably not true as that is the most Caymanian institution I know
That list could go on and on. You forgot Nurse Annie Bush, Nurse Pinkyof South Sound, Nurse Evelyn Wood, Nurse Jose Solomon, Nurse Jessie Rich of Bodden Town and Nurse Evans, Nurse Erna Jane of West Bay. They all carried the true caymanian spirit.
You seem to be assuming that the best is always the expat.
Save that a capable local person should never be unemployed because a foreign national who happens to be "better" wants to live and work here. If thereis no local to do the job at a good standard, then I agree – we should hire only the best on earth.
Unfortunately we have very large numbers of mediocre expats here too – so I guess we fail on both counts.
So now it seems (according to those giving a thumbs down above) we should all be unemployed, because I promise you all one thing, there is someone out there in the wider world who can do what you do, better. Never mind this is your home. We can find someone from overseas who is better/more experienced/more attractive/ willing to be paid less/got an extra O-level over you. Out on the streets you go, all in the name of meritocracy.
Think for a moment, will you!
That is the same in every country I have worked in. If you do not want the job or cannot perform up to a minimum criteria, there are plenty of other European nationals that will fill the post.
National boundaries and birthplace / passport are no guarrantees anymore.
For Pete sake stop talking about Caymanians not wanting to work and not knowing how to carry themselves. Do you know that before you came Cayman that our hospital was much better off. 1 you could always find a wheel chair or in fact wheel chairs was always parked in front of the hospital, 2 we had urinals or bed pans on every ward and emergency, 3 Ice bags was made available wherever necessary, Also pillows and blankets etc. Now a day they cannot be found. What a shame. No wander we can sit by and watch staff walking out of the hospital with two hand bags….. I say we need to have Cameras placed all over the hospital Ozzie. I would personally like to see our Emergency improved. When one is sitting for so long a period to see the Doctor they could at least be offered a bed, also little sick children should get first priority. Whenever Dr Teeling is on duty one can know as the turn over is much faster. Thats the man that Caymanians would like to see run the Hospital. He is not just a kind person but a professional person. Please , please, Ozzie see to it that all this loud chatting is stopped when one is so sick and attending Emergency, all personal home affaris are so,loudly discussed.
Terrifying. Suitably qualified is too low a standard when it comes to
my family’s health.
Ozzie, while you are at it, can you clean house too (and I mean literally clean it)?
I noticed on recent trips to the hospital that it is quite filthy nowadays and VERY dilapitated. Also, a recent trip to the ER turned out to be quite a disaster! The blankets they provide to patients look like they been dragged behind a car for a couple of weeks, the place is dirty (like old mop bits all over the floor), the staff is clearly not motivated, the doctor had extremely poor bedside manners and for the most part, while they were claiming they are busy, I counted 7 staff members standing behind the counter, chatting and sitting in front of the computers. That's what they seem to like to do a lot – hanging out by that counter!
Hear-Hear,
Miss Liz and Dr. Jeff – please step out of your exec offies and do daily rounds! The staff could use the boost and the cleanliness needs to be addressed. It's a hopsital in a very humid country. The public bathrooms need to be spotless and I want a faint smell of bleach.
We DO need more local ties too. More local volunteers (what ARE your teens doing this summer?) More local caring staff. Yes, train a few locals for some admin jobs, where is the business plan to increase locals in trained positions?
Keep the hospital cleaner and up the numbers of smiling locals at the HSA please.
Staff should not wear scrubs outside of work. It gives me the creeps when I see scrubs in line at a supermarket buffet. Besides providing a vector for infection in these days of antibiotic-resistant organisms, the wearing of scrubs in public just does not build public trust.
There were many qualified and experienced Caymanians who applied for the HR Manager postiion at the HSA a few years back and what did they do – give it to a foreigner who was not even qualified at that time and was pursuing a HR course then. It is not only the government side of it there is also the interference from the Board. I
Good one! Did you hear the one about the Qualified 5th grader who wanted to be King?
True story. The board needs a shake up because their relationship with management is too friendly, therefore allowing all kinds of rubbish to slide under the rug. Highly qualified people applied for the HR Director post and were politely turned away because a Jamaican was in training for it. In fact, hardly anyone in their HR department is Caymanian and their contracts keep getting renewed.
Just like the Head of the Financial Section at the HSA, she wasn't qualified, hired, got her qualification, on contract and allowed to stay on for another two years so she will be able to get status/PR and sideline the Caymanian who is qualified and is being demoralised so she can remain in the position. Contracts are for specified times/years, so why do they keep renewing them? Only to keep the Caymanian out on a limb, in the hopes that he//she will wake away.
It is time to clean house and let them realise this is CAYMAN.
The normal practice for the HSA is to wait until someone foreigners employment contract is either expired or just about to expire and then they advertise the position in a fake attempt to find a Caymanian to fill the position. They have no intention of hiring anyone else save the foreign person who is already in the position and the deadline/closing date for application is usually after the employment contract has expired and they have just gone ahead and renewed it telling Immigration that they must have the position filled. It is all al pile of crock and pure government corruption. Whilst it is and must be acknowledged that there are Caymanians who cannot fill these positions for a number of reasons there are also many Caymanians who are qualified to fill these positions but they are just not being hired. I personally know of a few Caymanians with college degrees in Hospital Administrative areas and they cannot get into the HSA not even as a cashier or customer service.
If you honestly think that is happening you're absolutely clueless. I am an Australian national who has been living in Cayman since I was 12 years old. I am now 24 and I still don't have status, just permanent residency. I went off to school and became a nurse, all out of my own pocket since I wasn't eligible for any government based scholarships as a non-Caymanian. After completing my schooling I applied to work for the HSA and did so for 3 years… until they told me they weren't going to renew my employment contract because I needed a work permit. I am a properly qualified (both in the Caribbean and globally), with experience and an honours degree, and they just stopped renewing my work permit. The person who has my job now? A Caymanian who I know was on academic probation on two seperate occasions during their nursing degree and actually failed the nursing exam the first time we took it together! All because she's a Caymanian. As Caymanians, I hope that we are OK with having a poorly qualified but ALL-CAYMANIAN HSA… because obviously, that is what is important.
See you are from Australia and of a different skin tone. You would not Qualify just like we Caymanians.
One suggestion – go back home to beautiful Australia. Having the globally recognised qualifications you boast of I'm sure you will land a job in no time flat!
It is a fact HSA employees does not require a work permit; they are treated the same way the expat workers in the Civil Services are treated – contract to the immigration department. yes i agree they have to submit their request to Immigration for the approval of the contract – but like everything else, it will be rubber stamped.
You have 20,000 work permits because the government makes money off of work permits…
oh yes, and then, in the past has squandered it to be of no benefit to Caymanians…the money must be used to upgrade education and vocational needs to give Caymanians a fighting chance. There also needs to be some serious attitude changes from certain elements…in the rest of the world, no-one gets or retains a job without being there to do it, without earning the right to be there or the respect of colleagues unless they deserve it…certain "we are superior" mentalities go against the very bible you all claim to read..
Govt does not make money off of itself by hiring expats, Govt depts do not pay work permit fees.
So i dont know how you can say how Govt makes money off of the 20,000 WPs
anon 1650 there are 20,000 people working in this country on work permits.
Each work permit has fees attached to it. Those fees are paid to Government.
Most work permit holders actually work in the private sector as Government is by large operated by Caymanians. Of course there are exceptions with some expats working for Government and they dont charge fees for those.
cast iron logic 16.50…keep taking the pills.
Build another 100 million dollar building to accomodate the new government paid doctors
Hear Hear! ALL adminstration roles not requiring a medical degree MUST be Caymanian! I am really sick of seeing unemployed Caymanians being passed by for work permit renewals and the HSA is one of the worse offenders.
Civil Service and the HSA must review all expat contracts and do more than a newspaper advert to fill these jobs with Caymanians. Work with the NWDA to recruit and promote Caymanians. Implement a shadow training program for all Admin jobs!!!
This is a step in the right direction!
We do NOT have an unemployment problem, we have 20,000 work permits, that is a problem!!!
How many Caymanians the are qualified to work in the medical field are unemployed ? You can't just hire any unskilled person and put them to work caring for people health..
Give me break..
I see a lot of unskilled expats working in skilled positions.
The you need some assistance with your vision…I know a couple of good opticians…foreigners, but good.
I dont think anyone was suggesting placing unskilled workers in care of peoples health.
I think they are takling about the unskilled posts being filled by work permit holders
08:44
I have to agree with you. Not enough qualified caymanians.Why didnt Caymanians prepare themselves for these jobs? they saw them coming loooong time ago.
I sure hope they have changed their out look and start preparing themselves, for jobs at Shetty hospital…. and stop blaming the foreigners for taking these avalible jobs.
You mean like all the lawyers did?
You may not know it, but yes, there IS in fact, a fully trained Caymanian doctor who has frecently returned home and he CANNOT get a job in the H.S.A. Yet, they employ a man who was his junior in Medical School! Just sayin'….
Name him. Is he like some in the past asking for a salary twice what all the other doctors are earning?
The man has asked for nothing more than what is fair and dictated by the H.S.A. salary scales. How quick you are to infer that there must be some fault of his why he was not employed. SMH.
Dr Matthew Grant
He would get that if he was expat. Like the HSA CEO brought in from Miami who was paid some $400,000 p.a. plus special benefits. Unheard of before or since. And he accomplished nothing.
Caymanians dont want to work, they want a job, but not to work, that is different. A self employed Caymanian and employer.
If no Caymanian wants to work for you, have you ever stopped to consider that the problem might be YOU?
12.09, My God, you got it!! A small percentage of the Caymanian potential work force is absolutely right and another 6.9 billion around the world who have to work hard and educate themselves are wrong. Why did I not see that before??? You guys are immortal, walk on water..and , by the way, cannot read and just see what you want to see…
I am a Caymanian and I am insulted by people like you who come on here generalising about Caymanians not wanting to work. I am and always have been a very hard worker. I also manage a team of over 50, 60% of whom are Caymanian. I can say without reservation that the vast majority are smart, hardworking people with good attitudes who want to contribute to their country and get ahead in life. So, do not get on here talking garbage about that Caymanians don't want to work! Caymanians want to be respected, given a fair chance and paid a decent wage for their efforts. On the other hand, I have also managed foreign employees who are also good workers but likewise I have also found some to also be lazy, have bad attitudes and only want to collect a paycheck. People are people, wherever we go, some with great work ethic and then others …. This does not just apply to Caymanians.
All fair, but you can get rid of the expats who are lazy. Only a Caymanian business can get rid of lazy Caymanians. I also work with excellent Caymanians, people who earned all our respect. However, there is another part of the business that suffers from the issues mentioned. The attitudes are frankly dreadful and they have no respect at all! There is an issue for sure, but generalising is also not fair.
Not every Caymanian are going to be that ready to work as most of us has had a good living, however the majority of us has been so smart that we were able to make a good Country for a very long time. When you talk about Nurses some of the best used to be at the hospital, such as our lovely Josie Solomon, Nurse Howard, Vernice Hawkins who was more like a Doctor rather than a nurse.All we have to do is just to screen these people properly. One of the most dedicated nurse I can ever think of is our own Joy Merren. May God bless all these people for their good work.
oh whatever, people like you are beating a dead horse. You cant get caymanians to work.great , maybe what we should ask is, what your attitude is like? maybe they dont want to work for you because your are an a&**h**(e, is that the reason why you can only employ people on work permitt?
Yes there are lazy caymanians out there, but there are far less lazy ones than ones that want to earn a honest living. It is the attitude of employers why alot of caymanians leave your sh*t jobs, you want to own and talk to them like they are nobodies, you can do that with people on permitts, you can work them and cheat them out of salaries and they wont complain, because they need a job and this is the best they can do.
There are two sides to a story and I bet most caymanians have a story about the employers that they have walked out on.
So go fly a kite and eat some humble pie.
Thank you.
Anon 0954 you are confusing are you saying that you are the last deserving caymanian or that youy no longer are caymanian.
You sound as if you have your own company and by assumption you must be fairly hard working. Heres news for you, you are not the only hard working caymanian. You just have not found the hard working one yet. I dont know how many misses you will allow your people and hopefully you will use the same standard as dealing with expats.
PS you sound just like an expat. Calling everycaymanian lazy.
07:01, You do not need a work permit to work for HSA as its a government entity.
I can really see the line up coming out the door for Caymanians wanting to "work" 12hr shifts at the hospital. Yeah right.
The majority of Caymanians out of employment are those who failed the school system, didn't get any sort of educational qualifications, thought they were too cool for school or are ex-convicts, wannabe gangsters and those that think they are owed something because they are "Caymanians".
Perhaps those complaining all the time, who have kids, can instil some ethics of hard work in their kids from now so they don't follow the same paths of those mentioned above.
Then we might get somewhere in the future in terms of people becoming gainfully employed.
And by the way, I am Caymanian so don't start with the expat doo doo.
Not a real one!
It should not matter what department of government you work, and if you have a work permit through the Immigration Department your Ministry, Department or Authority they should be responsible for filing and making the payment to the Immigration Board – that is one way we will recognise how many expats that government has in the service – Have a designation in the budget for each department for "Work Permit Fees" maybe we could keep control of the foreign Government worker and see the large amount of money government pays in Work Permit fees. Probably they would have to set a limit on the amount of fees they can pay for within the Budget year and stop robbing the Immigration Department of their fees.
Is it possible to do a check on the convicts employed on island who are imported. We read about the many convicts that have carried down so many businesses, are they locals?
Do you think as a Caymanian that you could get a job in Jamaica?
AS a Caymanian this is not good – that is why foreigners come to this country and say what they hear a caymanian/Status Holder say or write, and gives a bad impression – you are so wrong in castigating your own people, you should denounce your nationality of a Caymanian. Help those people who fall through the cracks and not carry them down.
17;52
That is easier said than done
Im a Caymanian, and have tried to work with many of my people, only but a small percentage will comply with good work ethic.
Many of us own small businesses and can not afford any set backs…. let alone get jobs.
What i have seen over the past 30 years, are caymanians..educated skilled and unskill preffering to start up their own business. This leaves hardly any willing and ethical Caymanians to be hired for jobs needed.
You can also see this trend whenever an expat gets his or her status. They start up their own business, which increases the want ad for more employees, and there are hardly any one left to be hired, and fill the post.
We call this free interprise…we just have to live with it. Stop blaming the Government,and the expats, we created this mess ourselves. We all want to be our own boss.
An old visionary, observatory Caymanian…. been there and done that!!!!
I agree that Caymanians should have the frist choice of employment at the HSA. It is a known fact, that years ago practically every position was filled by caymanians, but after a twist the sock got on the wrong foot and theywere pushed out. Let's clean house and make all the wrongs right. All those who are employing their friends and pulling them in through the cracks and maligning the caymanians, have to find the right sock to wear on the right foot.
I know locals who are being trated most unfairly, at the HDA, When they are trying to improve their skills and education, they are told they cannot be assisted or given time odd to persue their training, but special friends and countrymen are being allowed to study and gain qualifications at the HSA expense. Hello, isn't it time for one of us, or some of us to get the nod?
Lets clarify somthing. I am a Caymanian and also disgusted by the low show of Locals at the hospital. However I tried to ask about this and reality hit me straight in the face. The people that we think are not caymanians are very much connected, either married to some bum for conveiences or have found a way around the system. Up to this day, those massive status grants are working the way around slowly into every sector. There are so many fake marriges that its not even funny anymore. You see the problem is that what we Caymanians call caymanians is not a legal term. We Caymanains can walk in and notice this and we ask ourselves why so many people are from the close Carribbean Island, but they actualy belive they are better than the other Expats. So when you think you are talking to a caymanian, please get the facts straight. This is not to make a predjudice comments, this is to clarify what We Caymanians see and what the other people see. So the obvious is that we see alot of one nationality there at HSA, very obvious even blind granny can see it. But this is what we have become, same thing happens in the private sector. When labor board send someone its usualy never a caymanian, but a person married to caymanian or one of the massive status grants connected persons. Same thing that is happening at the UCCI. Go ahead, take a look. What I do not understand is really the mentality of the Caymanians, or should I say fake, they really think that they are entitled to come to cayman and be trained and have the education funded by the Cayman islands Goverment, just because they have a paper. And belive me when I tell you at the CI Goverment Hospital it is a color thing. But its a reversed predjudice. Its a shame what the light skin people over there has to face, how they are insulted and made to look stupid in front of the victims that come into the hospital.
You want to know why there aren't many locals in health care? It is because the government doesn't provide for those students who want to study the sciences. I was born and raised in Cayman, and have been interested in the sciences my whole life; going to Catholic – sciences were never a priority. When I got accepted to medical school, there were no available scholarships because I wasn't getting a degree that was useful to the tourism or financial industry. My choosen course of study wasn't worth funding to many of the scholarships on the island. Caymanians do not want to do health care; all we want to do is sit in air conditioned offices in insurance companies, financial firms and banks. If he truly does want more locals in the health care industry then start in the schools. Stimulate an interest in the sciences, improve our work experience programs and broaden the placements to include more science/engineering/healthcare-based jobs, and provide funding for those students who are keen to study the sciences and think outside the Caymanian box of finance and accounting.
Ozzie get them brother!!First Thing!!!Unprofessional Behavior and the health care team.
1-Bullying and Intimidation.
2-Sexual Harrasment
3-Racial,ethnic or sexist slurs
4-Loud and Rude comments while in the Emergency Room,etc…
5-Intimidation,abusive and offensive language
6-Persistent Lateness in responding to work calls
7-Throwing Instruments
8-Offensive Sarcasm
9-Demands for special treatment
10-Passive aggression
The emergency needs the most brushing up. I agree with 22:17. The ambulance staff is so efficient and courteous but when you reach the emergency my God you die from the noise in there. Personal and domestic conversations kill you. People sit in the waiting hours for hours regardless of what they are suffering from, even children. Many very sick leave and go back home where at least they canlie down. I cant understand why a good Dr like Dr Bromley is not still at the hospital Is it because he has Caymanian Residence? He was one of the best who walked through the doors and not to mention Dr Teeling. Dont you see we should encourage hiring from Countrys such as theirs. Too much of one thing is no good. Anyhow it is even happening in our churches now a day too. Ruined Country!!!
Well from selling fish for 10$ the last four years to 15000 a month when is this madness gonna stop
Ozzie, I woted for you and if you keep up this pathetic populist "I am all for Caymanians even when they are useless and unemployable" shit that you and the PPM came up with last time, I am going to turn that cow cod on you.
To Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 06/19/2013 – 19:43 Stop trying to create division where none exists.It is perfectly ok for a Government member to enquire as to why more Caymanians are not working in a certain field.In fact it is his responsibility to find out why.No where is it mentioned that the Minister acted or spoke in a negative way about the expats in the HSAor use the disgusting and self serving expressions that you quote ie "I am all for Caymanians even when they are useless and unemployable" You are the one trying to cause problems by posting such rubbish.You come across as sore loser ,UDP supporter .
Well, I do hope that there is someone looking out for competent, qualified Caymanians to ensure they do get the jobs. The implication of your post that all unemployed Caymanians are unemployable and useless is disgraceful. If you are Caymanian you ought to be ashamed of yourself.
Truth of the matter is that there are no competent, qualified Caymanians looking for jobs.
Absolute and unequivocal nonsense. Take off your blinders!
Absolutely true. Caymanian unemployment is a myth.
Except to the qualified Caymanians who are unemployed for whom it is a painful reality.
If you were so competent you would not find yourself here in Cayman. I spent everythinh I had educating my child in a University in Florida. Upon her return there was no job to be given. After 11 months of filling applications and being told that they were being put on file I decided to go myself and ask for a position I knew that was available. I even had to tell the boss that I was going on Radio talk show about this if my child could not get a job in their department. I guess that is the straw that broke the camels back, and here today a very dedicated worker has been on the same job for over 8 years. So you see its not only the hospital that has the same problem.
Rubbish. Obviously you are not in a position to make such a statement.
Obviously you are a real ignorant person!! You don’t even understand the question he asked. He did not say anything negative about anyone. As the Minister of Health etc. he has every right to delve into these matters, especially when so many Caymanian’s are unemployed. Why are you so angry- are you someone who is also not up to the mark but getting your salary every month. Just in case you have forgotten this is not the Kremlin- every one is entitled to make a statement. You all better get used to these questions being asked and problems being highlighted because there is much more to come. You can get angry and go sit in the corner or you can also be part of the solution!!
PPM playing the same games and divisive message from the last time they were in power. If Ossie keeps this type of politics up Cayman is looking at another long four years
How is it games and "divisive" to try to address unemployment among Caymanians? You are one twisted fella.
Back in 2007 they ran a recruitment drive to try and encourage local high school students to become medical professionals, particularly nursing staff. The response was along the lines that it was too much like real work. The potential candidates preferring jobs like receptionists and secretaries where they didn't have to get their hands dirty.
To: Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 06/19/2013 – 16:11. You just could not resist a chance to look down your nose at Caymanians,could you?How about the fact that there are thousands of expats employed locally in offices and not getting their hands dirty.Should these jobs be given to expats only ,or should Caymanians also aspire to get some of these jobs.Please stop the hating ,and instead say a thank you prayer for the fact that you are able to find a job here .
Sounds from that comment 19:56 that the truth hurts and you don't like it. This isn't mud slinging, what happened in 2007is a fact and I was there. Ex-pats get jobs not because they are ex-pats but because they are better qualified, more experienced and better motivated than the Caymanian competition – these are the problems you need to sort out. All the government initiatives in the world will not solve a situation where people who don't even want to be bothered with completing high school still expect to walk into well-paid jobs simply because they were born here – those days are over.
Please leave… just leave and never come back. You don't contribute to these islands and you've made it quite clear that you hold no love for the people who do.
We have enough divison within our own ranks, we don't need anymore.
yeah, and if the government get it sorted, there will be a wide spread of expats protesting that they should not have to leave to give up their jobs to caymanians.
You need to get off your high horse and sit for a second. Do you think children are naturally lazy? IF social planning and last of proper educational input is a problem, what do you expect form the children? You talk as if this problem isnt around the world. All that has happened, is the expats who are at bottem of the food chain has found themselves here on this island working, people who can not get a job in their own country and are now getting paid better than most people who are smarter and more educated than them in their own countries. These expats are going to hold on to these things tighter than modonna's g-string, so what will happen to caymanians. Young Caymanians see their parents treated like shit, belittle by expats and not reaching anywhere while these people are brought in who know jack about anything to be their bosses. What future do you see for them? Their parents suffer, the education suffer, what do you think they will choose.
It is people like you who disgust me. YOU call out the end result, without even looking at what has caused people to be demotivated. There are more people on this island suffering from depression because of the crap that they have to deal with because of attitude like what you have displayed and the belittlement they go through on a daily bases.
I've yet to hear of any recent development of expats trying to help promote any caymanian before they are rolled over. Im interested to know. I bet only a handful, if that.
Don't kid yourself. Expats also get jobs because they come from the same country or have the same 'culture' as their expat bosses. They are often deemed to be a "better fit" and it is said their accents match the expectations of overseas clients. Check it out. Where the bosses are Brits a much greater proportion of the employees is British. Canadians the same. Jamaicans the same.
True, and only because the immigration law is not enforced to ensure balance.
I'm going to be the asshole that says this: They learnt from the best.
SOME of our elders love to point out the lazy, money grubbing, selfish attitude of- what should be noted are only SOME of- the youth here in Cayman. It's about high time that they start looking at themselves (NOT just Caymanians, Expatriates as well) and the example they have made. EVERYONE has contributed to this shit heap and no longer can the hypocrites and passive critics delegate their load to anyone else.
We're gonna have to suck it up and make some sacrifices, but we did not ask to be in the situation we are in. We can only know what we have learned. So it's not just us, but you- our elders- that are gonna have to hop down into the mud with us because most of this shit is YOURS.
How refreshing, some relevant facts instead of pseudo-nationalistic hog wash. This highlights the fact that , yes, the Caymanians make these choices for their careers early on. The choices are made in high school. Simple. Good luck Ozzie!
atahere is nothing with employing from abroad but the question is ,why only Jamaica and India?
Ozzie you should have been here earlier. I applied for a position at the HSA meeting all the requirements and heard nothing back from them. I checked to see who had gotten the job, only to find out it was given to an expat whose contract started a month before the dealine for applications. So your work is seriously cut out for you because you have more contract employees to weed out of there. I only hope the other ministers follow your example because government employs more contract workers than Caymanians.
It is time that someone addressed this matter….. long overdue and far tooooo many caymanians unemployed..
Noble thoughts from said minister…could he be awfully nice too and check all the qualifications of people he proposes to employ? Otherwise he might find they need some expensive training before they can start…unless of course our new found health tourism sector is to become the health slaughter sector?
I do not disagree with him at all, there should be more Caymanians…we have to ask the question, why aren't there? Is it a lack of interest? Lack of qualifications? Then how does he proprose to address that need…we are talking years here…nice sound bites now just don't cut it without digging into the reasons why. A blatant attempt in my view to get himself popular at the expense of ex-pat/Caymanian relationships–a little foolish given that work permits is where the majority of CIG revenues come from..
There are positions here that CAN be filled by QUALIFIED Caymanians who are willing and able to do them. However, the forces that be look after their own and bring in more and more of one nationality. Even if more expats are required then there should be diversity. AND, I am not prejudiced against any other nationality, I am just sick of the hatefulness that comes towards me and my people in our most vulnerable moments from the prominent nationality there. Thank you Minister Bodden for questioning and I thank you in advance for doing something to make life a bit more pleasant for your people who must attend that medical facility.
I always find these comments alluding somehow Caymanians may not be up to the mark when it comes to certain jobs. Yet they could not secure a job from whence they came. Hmmm…..
I don'tlike the lies and generalisations about Caymanians either, but have you ever tried applying for a job in a huge country when you are literally competing against thousands of applicants seeking the same position? Of course its easier to get a job here where there's hardly anyone applying, especially in the professional services sector where specific skills, knowledge and qualifications not usually available on-island are required.
Ozzie – it all goes back to the fact that the entire civil service including the HSA are exempt from ythe immigration law. They are able to operate just like the Special Economic Zone. Do the right thing, long promised, and extend the immigration law to the civil service.
The private sector manages to deal with it appropriately in private hospitals and healthcare facilities – often with better results!
Ummm…the HSA is not the civil service and is not exempt from the Immigration Law.
Are you suggesting all non Caymanians at the hospital face rollover and must get key employee etc? Do you believe the Boards apply anything like the scrutiny they apply to the private sector?
because it requires dedication, patience, hardwork….etc.
"because it requires dedication, patience, hardwork….etc." … Well I'm still waiting to see those qualities you listed eminating from the foreign element that is currently there! Instead what I experience from the majority, as do many others who are forced to attend that place, is "rudeness, low class behaviour, hatefulness, uncaring attitudes, and a clear dislike for Caymanians". Continue to question Mr. Bodden, question and make the necessary changes to make the lives of other residents here safer and a whole lot more pleasant when we are ill and vulnerable.
I'm wondering if you and I were at the same hospital. During two visits there — each lasting three days and one requiring emergency treatment — I received exemplary care. The compassion and professionalism of everyone I encountered were instrumental in promoting my overall recovery. I experienced these qualities from staff members who hailed from Cayman, Jamaica, the Philippines, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. Whatever HSA is dong to cultivate such positive service — keep it up!