Belize’s Nursing Shortage: A Crisis Long Before COVID

Long before the COVID pandemic swept the globe, hospitals and clinics were grappling with a severe shortage of nurses. This issue continues to plague the nursing field in Belize, driven by an aging population, increasing burnout, and more attractive incentives in developed countries. Despite these challenges, Chandra Nisbet-Cansino, C.E.O. of Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital (K.H.M.H.), assures that the hospital is doing everything possible to retain its dedicated nursing staff.

 

Chandra Nisbet-Cansino, Chief Executive Officer, K.H.M.H.

“There’s a global crisis; however, we now have programs within the country – nursing programs that are really helping us now to build back up our staff. The Ministry of Health and Wellness offers scholarships, and so that offers a lot of opportunities for nurses to study. And so, I think slowly but surely, we’re creeping back up to where we want to – not there yet, but getting there.”

 

Reporter

“Do you find that when they come here, they’re inclined to stay?”

 

Chandra Nisbet-Cansino

“For the most part, yes. Karl Heusner [Memorial Hospital] is the place to come for experience. Here you will get a little of everything, and then you have nurses that you know, further specialize or retire, et cetera, but the best experience that you can get as a nurse is to come to Karl Heusner.”