The Global Filipino Magazine

Doctors are known to make the world a better place, one smile at a time. This is the profession of Abu Dhabi-based Dr. Catherine Bañas, a general practice dentist at Ahalia’s Kabayan Clinic. A University of the Philippines graduate, Dr. Catherine has above ten years of clinical experience in dentistry. For many years, she has been putting on her clients’ best smiles every day. It was 2018 when a UAE-based company directly hired her. She went through the right channel to employ Filipinos from the Philippines in the UAE, so when she arrived, she was already on her working visa. But when she started to carve her overseas journey, the clinic where she worked was poorly managed, as she described it. “It was here for a very long time. But…

A doctor should possess talent, energy, resolve, and character. Abu Dhabi-based Filipino doctor Dr. Harold Sosa has been living and working in the UAE for 10 years, playing a massive role in promoting a healthy lifestyle in the country and helping residents with their health-related problems. Currently, Dr. Harold is working at the Al Ahalia Hospital and is one of the original Filipino doctors who opened the Kabayan Clinic. During the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, he was too busy curing thousands of patients. His dedication to work left a mark, literally, on his face after wearing multiple face masks that is still present on his nose bridge. He attended to different types of patients who manifested Covid-19 symptoms and needed utmost medical attention. “I always protect my family because…

A doctor is not defined by his or her medical school GPA. They work towards becoming practicing physicians and develop more qualities that equip them to be successful in the field. With 17 years of clinical experience and eight total work experiences in the UAE, Dr. Caryl Sosa’s good qualities as a general practitioner at Alhalia Hospital’s Kabayan clinic are shared by many successful medical practitioners. Her family and friends best describe her as a person and colleague with compassion, a strong work ethic, professionalism, knowledge about work, confidence, and humility. It was the year 2012 when she decided to follow his husband, who is also a doctor, in the UAE. She brought their kids to the UAE because she believes parents should be present during their kids’ formative years.…

Dubai-based Filipino entrepreneur Malou Prado believes that self-belief and hard work will always earn one’s success. Growing up in the town of Cavite in the Philippines, her parents would always tell her that education is the only ticket to stay away from poverty. In an effort to surpass financial constraints, she assisted her mother in selling ‘tinapa’ in the local market. With her determination and gusto to end the cycle of poverty, Malou was able to finish a Baccalaureate course in Bachelor of Science in Business Administration at the prestigious Lyceum University Manila. To pursue a career, she opted to work in Taiwan where she met her lifetime partner, Robert Prado, and got married afterward when they went back home to the Philippines. Just like any typical Filipino dreamer, she…

Finding your passion is figuring out what you want to do, what inspires you, and gets you up in the morning eager to seize the day. And figure out how you can get there and what it would take to be that person. Flordeliza Suba-Elep, a licensed Filipina pharmacist, found her passion in the real estate business back in the Philippines, which became her profession for more than 18 years. Liza, fondly called by her family and friends, embarked on her corporate journey as a compliance officer for a pharmaceutical company to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Department of Health (DOH). At one point, she was convinced to join a multi-level marketing business which opened her horizons in the field of sales and marketing. This paved the…

Much has been said about following dreams. But for Rhona May Nollan Reyes, dreams can be challenging. Nine years ago, she decided to pursue her dreams in Malaysia as a band vocalist. She traveled to various places in the country. After building her professional profile, she traveled to many countries she had never been to before, like Cambodia, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Myanmar. In 2018, her band went to Abu Dhabi to work on Raskery Bar; however, it was just a short stay as they flew back to Malaysia the next year and stayed there for three months. She then moved back to Abu Dhabi and signed a contract to perform in Cheers Bar in Al Ain Place Hotel before the Covid-19 pandemic. The pandemic, which had disrupted businesses across the…