Pinoy nurses finally take center stage in US medical dramas
Bow!
Many have wondered in the past why in medical dramas shown in the US, Filipino nurses were not given prominent roles—despite the fact that they are lynchpins of medical care in real life in the US.
I don’t recall if there were any Filipino nurses or doctors with noticeable speaking parts in either ER or Grey’s Anatomy, for instance. I always used to wonder—what if Pia Wurtzbach landed a role as a top medical practitioner in a California hospital? That would put Filipino actors on the Hollywood map for a role Filipinos actually play in real life.
A 2021 study revealed that registered nurses (RNs) trained in the Philippines constitute one out of 20 RNs in the United States, maintaining their status as the largest group of foreign-trained nurses to date, according to Harvard online sources. When I asked Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Manuel Romualdez if Filipino nurses were highly regarded in the US, he replied in a heartbeat: “Absolutely.”
In fact, the envoy shared that former President George Bush Sr. was cared for by a Filipino nurse until he passed away.
So it was a pleasant surprise to see at least two Filipino nurses with major supporting roles in the medical drama series The Pitt, now streaming on Max. It stars Noah Wyle, “Dr. Carter” of ER fame, portraying Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch, the head doctor of the fictional Pittsburgh-based emergency room in Pittsburgh Trauma Hospital.
My nephew, Dr. Marko Parungo, said that of all the medical drama series he has watched so far, The Pitt is the closest to emergency-room reality. As reviews have pointed out, The Pitt focuses less on romances and broom closet moments and more on the gripping, nail-biting, fast-paced moments that actually take place in hospitals, particularly the emergency room.
But to me, what really sets The Pitt apart is the (belated) recognition of Filipino nurses in American hospitals. Finally. The Pitt includes in its storyline two nurses portrayed by Filipino-American actresses Amielynn Abellera, who portrays Filipino nurse “Perlah,” and Kristin Villanueva, who portrays nurse “Princess.”
In one episode, Princess gives sound advice to an intern about doing certain lab tests, as heart attacks can masquerade as stomach pain. Dr. Robby tells the intern it was good to listen to Princess, because of her experience.
Even her name is so Pinoy, “Princess,” just like “Junjun” and “Boy.”
Perlah and Princess are also shown more than once as engaging in chismis in Tagalog behind the others’ backs in the ER. I remember there was a celebrated case many years ago about a certain US-based hospital banning Filipinos from speaking in their native tongue, perhaps because of this propensity. There is a “Maritess” in each of us after all. Guilty!
In fact, in another medical drama, New Amsterdam, two Filipino nurses wonder in Tagalog behind the back of an American doctor how long she will last in the hospital, and much to their amazement and embarrassment, she answers them back in perfect Tagalog! In fairness, it is not only Filipinos who resort to the familiarity of their native tongue when in a place foreign to them.
I asked another cousin, Chrystin Reyes, an award-winning American nurse of Filipino descent, what sets Filipino nurses apart—as all other races have their assets, too.
“Pinoy nurses are exceptional. The oath to fix what is wrong, to do no harm, to process death in seconds and move on to the next (patient). It is in our DNA to work hard and to have a sixth sense to know what other health-care providers miss. Our deep love and compassion for the work to help everyone unconditionally is what separates Pinoy nurses from the general nursing population,” says Chrystin, who is only 45 years old and a mother of two.
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In the United Kingdom, it was a Filipino nurse, May Parsons, who administered the first vaccine when the UK launched in December 2020 its immunization drive during the pandemic.
May, according to the Royal College of Nursing, became the first person in the world to deliver the COVID-19 vaccine to a patient outside of a clinical trial, administering the first dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine to Margaret Keenan at University Hospital, Coventry, on Dec. 9, 2020.
Queen Elizabeth II had also awarded Filipina Charito Romano with the British Empire Medal for outstanding work at a nursing care home in the midst of the pandemic in the United Kingdom in 2021.
When Prince Charles was crowned King in May 2023, Charito and Xyza Macutay-Malloch, a manager of a home for the elderly, were among the over 2,000 guests invited to witness his coronation.
Xyza also received the British Empire Medal in 2021. (The BEM is awarded for “hands-on” service to the local community.)
Lately, Prince William expressed gratitude for the care Filipino nurses gave his wife, Catherine, after she underwent abdominal surgery in London. Though some critics called him out for making the nurses’ authenticity the alleged focal point of the compliment—instead of just saying “nurses”—Filipino nurses said they were not offended at all.
“I love how Filipino nurses and medical workers have always been known to be amazing worldwide,” tweeted a Filipino citizen in reaction.
I personally love how Filipino nurses are malambing, empathetic, and sympathetic. And even if they sometimes are a “Maritess,” who among us isn’t?
Take a bow, ladies and gentlemen.
