Filipino nurse and comedian Nurse Even performs during his Arizona stop of “This Is Bullshift: The Most Toxic Shift.” Photo courtesy of Richard Beltran III
ARIZONA — For Filipino nurse, content creator and comedian Nurse Even, making people laugh while traveling around the world has become more than entertainment. Behind the comedy is a message he hopes will resonate with overseas Filipino workers: while caring and providing for others, they should not forget to take care of themselves.
In an interview ahead of his Arizona show, produced by AZ Manila Productions, Nurse Even spoke about his ongoing world tour, his life as a full-time nurse and the deeper message behind his performances for Filipino communities abroad.
Nurse Even, a Filipino nurse, comedian and content creator based in the United Kingdom, has built an online following through comedy inspired by his experiences in healthcare and everyday Filipino life. Despite his growing career in entertainment and live performances, he continues to work full-time as a nurse, a profession that remains central to much of his content.
His tour has brought him to Filipino communities in different parts of the United States, with Canada among his next destinations. While his performances are built around comedy, Nurse Even said his current material also reflects the experiences of Filipinos who left the Philippines to build lives abroad.
“The material that I present is about the life of an OFW, the life of a Filipino who left the Philippines,” Nurse Even said.
For many in his audience, those experiences are familiar. His material touches on demanding jobs, sacrifices for family, adjusting to life in another country and the responsibilities that often come with becoming a breadwinner.
It is a perspective Nurse Even understands not only as a performer but also as a healthcare professional.
Nurse Even poses with members of AZ Manila Productions and fans following his comedy show in Arizona. Photo courtesy of Richard Beltran III
Despite traveling and performing, Nurse Even said he continues to work full-time as a nurse. Away from the stage and camera, he maintains the professional life that initially inspired much of his online content.
“After doing content, after comedy, after working as a comedian, I still work as a nurse,” he said.
Much of his comedy developed from situations he encountered in the Philippines and later in the healthcare industry. Rather than presenting those experiences as purely serious or difficult, he incorporates comedy to make them lighter and relatable to his audience.
“Sinisigurado ko talaga it’s relatable,” he said, explaining that he draws from scenarios he experienced in the Philippines and in healthcare and adds comedy, so the subject does not become too heavy.
While healthcare provides the setting for much of his content, the experiences can extend beyond the medical profession. Long working hours, exhaustion, workplace pressure and the challenge of balancing professional and personal responsibilities are experiences familiar to workers in different fields.
For Nurse Even, however, one of the most important themes of his tour goes beyond work: It is about what can happen when Filipinos spend years putting everyone else first.
KAYO MUNA
When asked what message he wanted to give OFWs, not only those in the United States but Filipinos working in different parts of the world, Nurse Even emphasized the importance of prioritizing themselves.
“To always prioritize yourselves. You always have to treat yourselves. Kayo muna,” he said.
The message speaks to an experience familiar to many Filipino migrant families. An overseas worker may become a primary provider, carrying financial responsibilities for immediate family members and, in some cases, relatives back home.
The message gives his performances a more reflective dimension. While audiences may come to laugh, Nurse Even also wants them to recognize pieces of their own lives in the stories he brings to the stage.
For generations, Filipinos have traveled overseas in pursuit of professional opportunities and greater financial security for their families. For some, success abroad can become closely connected with their ability to provide for loved ones.
Nurse Even’s message does not reject that responsibility. Instead, he wants OFWs to remember that caring for their families does not have to mean completely setting aside their own happiness and well-being.
His tour has also given him an opportunity to hear directly from Filipinos living abroad. Those conversations, he said, have reminded him that behind every OFW journey is a different story.
“I’m very blessed, grateful na 'yung iba pala talaga may mga iba’t ibang kwento talaga, may mga pinagdadaanan talaga,” he said.
Hearing those stories has also allowed him to reflect on his own journey and the opportunities that have come with his growing audience.
ABS-CBN News U.S. correspondent John Saavedra sits down for a one-on-one interview with Nurse Even before his Arizona comedy show. Photo courtesy of AZ Manila Productions
FROM HEALTHCARE WORKER TO CONTENT CREATOR
Nurse Even’s path into entertainment developed alongside his career in healthcare. His content largely centers on the realities of working in the medical field, transforming stressful, difficult or familiar workplace situations into material that audiences can recognize.
Over time, his online presence expanded beyond social media content and into live performances, allowing him to bring his brand of healthcare-inspired comedy directly to audiences.
Nurse Even said reaching a wider audience was something he hoped for as a content creator, even though he could never predict which particular video or post would connect with viewers.
For other aspiring content creators, he said consistency, authenticity and having a goal are important.
“Just one post at a time,” he said. “You will never know kung ano ang magvi-viral.”
“You have to have a goal and be yourself. You have to be not afraid to be yourself,” he added.
As his audience grew, opportunities to perform for Filipino communities in different places followed.
During his Arizona visit, Nurse Even said the United States had become one of the memorable parts of his tour, particularly because of the size of the country and the Filipino communities he has encountered along the way.
Filipino nurse and comedian Nurse Even performs during his Arizona stop of “This Is Bullshift: The Most Toxic Shift.” Photo courtesy of Richard Beltran III
Before arriving in Arizona, he had been in California, with Canada next on his schedule.
Touring, he said, has become an opportunity not only to perform but also to meet Filipino communities personally. Those encounters are particularly meaningful because his comedy is rooted in experiences many Filipinos abroad recognize in their own lives.
SHARED EXPERIENCES
While individual OFW stories differ, Nurse Even’s material draws from shared experiences of working abroad, supporting family and adjusting to life away from home.
He said those experiences have helped him connect with Filipino communities throughout his tour. While comedy brings audiences together, he hopes they also remember the message behind his performances.
“I want you to remember me as a person who is resilient, a person who is grateful and loving,” he said.
Nurse Even said he wants audiences to leave his shows feeling happier and, even for a few hours, able to set aside some of the problems they may be carrying.
For OFWs, his message remains simple: caring and providing for others should not mean forgetting themselves.
As Nurse Even continues his tour, he hopes that message stays with Filipino audiences around the world.