To Filipino Nurses in NEW ZEALAND? Have questions please..

hi, i checked the website of Timaru.. They have a 6-week "Return to Nursing Programme" for NZD 750.00 ... is this program the same with the CAP which is required in order to be registered?

thanks your reply.

Hi cioman94,
Yes, it's the same as CAP..That training was NCNZ accredited CAP.. They also have rental accomodation for student, next building to the hospital.South Canterbury District Hospital is a teaching hospital down south.I think they are connected to Otago University. Timaru has a small filipino communty which they are always willing to help fellow kababayan new in the place.Just a tip if you want to meet filipinos here in NZ just go to sunday mass in a catholic church.

I believe that the $750 CAProgramme fee is applicable to NZ Permanent resident or Citizen only. I have inquired about it before I came here in NZ.

Hello Everyone,
If you guys do really want to come and work in NZ(even live here), that's great. Before you can work as a RN, you must get registered within the Nursing Council of New Zealand(NCNZ). Visit there website and download the application forms (the sit has all the info). Once you completed the requirements then submit it including the processing fee. It is also an advantage if you have passed the IELTS test (specific score for NCNZ). Before you will be waiting approx. 6 weeks or so before you get a reply. Nowadays it take longer for the NCNZ to reply(not just bec. of the huge no. of applicants) but also due to the fact that in the Philippine there's also huge no. of school of nursing that's now operating. The NCNZ is aware of this and they're so worried about the quality of the nurses. They now require apart from the Transcript of Record (TOR), they wanted also the course outline/syllabus (or description of every subject in the whole nursing study). Perhaps this will help them assess the equivalent of the nursing standard in NZ school of nursing compared with the Phil. So, if they're satisfied with the initial assessment then they will require you to take the CAP, Competency Assessment Programme. Different school has different fees. To give you an idea about the cost:

NCNZ Application fee/Processing fee =NZ$485
Tuition Fee (Unitec NZ)incl med/travel insurance =$3977.23
Accommodation(12 weeks)approx =$1800
Transport,approx =800
Indemnity Insurance =<100
MRSA (lab test) =22

No one failed this CAP. The theory component includes,
Nurse and the law in NZ Quality Assurance
Ethics Treaty of Waitangi
Nursing Informatics Cultural Safety
Regulations in NZ Preparation for Clinical Practice

In regards to Agents, the advantage is they will process for you while you're working in the Phil, they will Authenticate your documents, arrange your flight and liase with NZ base agency who will liase with the NCNZ find you school, accommodation, etc.
And of course you can also do this if you're prepared to wait and follow up with the NCNZ and find schools for you or even arrange accom. etc.

Jobs in NZ is not a problem so if anyone of you hear and promise a job say thank you. You wont even get a job offer bec you're not even registered yet.

Anyway, I hope I have enlighten you guys about coming and work in NZ.

As per terms of service please do not post email or phone numbers for your own safety. If you want to exchange please use the pm system

Hello again Everyone,
More info? OK.
So basically you need to apply for a Visitors Visa. Why? Bec. with Visitors Visa it is easy, cheaper (I guess), and you're allowed to study as long as the course is 3months or less in length. Now, once you're in NZ completing your CAP, during your placement which is in a two settings (one Age Care facility and one in an Acute Care facility). In the acute settings (usually in huge hospitals which is also the DHB District Health Board) most nurses also like working, this is also their chance to look around and decide where they feel like working (specific area). They can show interest or even submit an application to the unit/wards. Sometimes the unit/ward that they're doing their placement even offer them job once they completed their CAP.
Now, once your CAP is completed, usually the school indicates that you've pass(no one fails anyway, unless you're really not worth). The school will now submit their assessment result to the NCNZ. The NCNZ is still the decision maker, and the reply takes a week or so, depending the no. of students. At the same time, you can now check your application and follow up with the unit. If you're accepted then they can give you a job offer (only after they confirm it from the NCNZ about your status, even the certificate is not posted yet to you). Your job offer is important so you can change your visitors visa to a working visa before it expires. Sometimes you have to extend your visitors visa pending NCNZ decision.(not often happens).
Say you've got your approval from the NCNZ, and you have a working permit, you now apply for a practicing cert. with the NCNZ(it doesn't take long at all). And once you've got all of this, then a happy nurse working in NZ, the place to be.

In my next info. I will discuss about the contracts and free tuition. So watch this space.

There is just one important thing i wanna know and be sure of.. Assuming that after my CAP and obtaining an NZ nursing license, i went back home in the Philippines for personal reasons, then later on would like to finally find work in the NZ while staying in the Philippines, is this possible? i mean, could i still viably find work by applying through email at various hospitals in NZ?

Finally, with my one-year hospital experience/training-certiificate, will i be able to find hospital job? what's the real situation there of a Filipino one-year experience hospital nurse? what's your opinion?

Thank you in advance, i am just apprehensive of what my career future be in NZ assuming i obtain my NZ license, but i only have one year hospital experience/training..

Hello cioman94,
I'd like to answer your question in many ways. First, given that you're holding a visitors permit(suggested in my previous entry as Visitors Visa) then either you convert it to a work permit or extend your visitors permit. If you have a work permit, you have to convert it to a work visa so you can travel back in the Phil. and when you're ready then you can use it to come back to NZ(as long as it's not expired). If you have an extended visitors permit, your stay in NZ is basically extended (and you're legal to stay) once you leave NZ, your visitors permit also expires. Which means you have to find a way to come back easy to NZ.
Now, you can apply online to job vacancies in NZ. If the unit thinks that you are an asset to their department(with all your experience and reference check are excelent)then they can give you a job offer which is good bec you can use the job offer as a tool to apply for a work permit/visa to come to NZ.

In regards to employment with only one year experience, I'm sure you can still get a job (global shortage of nurses) one year is better than nothing. The important thing is if the NCNZ will approve your qualification in the Phil and ask you to take the CAP. Once NCNZ is please to say that they're happy for you to take the CAP then thats you key for a bright future.

Before I end this, I'd like to thank Brian(owner of allnurses.com) for giving me the opportunity to share my view/s, I'd like to thank the moderators too, and to you all who are a member of this site and participated in this forum.

Also if I may, I'd like to tell everyone that I'm a nurse in NZ for 16 years now. The reason why I want everyone to know is that all info that I put in this site are all genuine. We have also help considerable no. of Phil nurses to come to NZ.

Once again, thank you.

Hello I'm back,
In relation to Contracts and Free Tuition:
Many agents out there, and they call themselves a lot of names(Agents, Agency, Consultancy, even travel agents,etc). The thing is, everyone makes a living and they do it in different ways(if you know what I'm saying). Some of them know what they're doing , some know little, and some thinks they knew everything , and some know nothing. First if you wanted someone to process your documents for application for registration in New Zealand as a nurse then I would suggest to go for a POEA approved agencies. Somewhere you can go back if things didn't work for you or if info was misleading. Please avoid Consultancy, they are suppose to be just consultants and not to deploy nurses. They are not POEA approved and they don't need to be bec they're consultancy business. Same thing with travel agency, they're suppose to be arranging your travel business not your registration as a nurse in New Zealand.

So some of these agent/s find a way to lure nurses, something attractive. What they tell you is, that there's a job waiting for you in New Zealand, they/we pay for your tuition fee or even provide accommodation , or even pay for your air fare. Well for me this is great. As long as NCNZ ask me to do the CAP and I needed the money for tuition and everything and I even got a job, well this is really great. But what's the catch, well for the tuition fee, the agent will go to the outskirts of NZ and find a Resthome or Private Geriatric hospital(nothings wrong with resthomes and geriatrics) to sponsor or pay for your tuition. In return, you will be under contract(possibly 2years or more). You are isolated and I'm not sure about the condition of work or workplace. These resthome owners will agree bec they needed the staff desperately. Most staff work in the acute setting and progress better and are exposed to great learning opportunities(and better pay). What I've just told you are not told to Phil. nurses by the agent (why would they). The other scheme is agent get their cut by salary deduction from the nurses. So the agent then binds you a contract while you're in the Phil.that you will stay and work in the place that they asigned to you or otherwise you pay big time. Some tried to break the contract but no success. Agent always bring the nurses to these places bec the big hospitals in the city does not want to pay agents fee ( they do before, but try to avoid now). The big hospitals prefer individual nurses themselves to apply. No contracts even.

I'm sure that you've heard about the CMDHB went to the Phil to direct hire. Well that's great too, they also pay the tuition and even airfare. They do direct hiring to avoid money making agents. But the problem was that most of the qualified candidates(bec of their good experience) they did not pass the IELTS. So the recruitement drive wasn't the best( they have successful once too). Take note the descision is still with the NCNZ.

All the best for everyone.

hi there big heart.

I am a second courser, my first course was a degree in medical technology. I took my BSN for 2 years. I attended all my classes and duty hours. I am disappointed that NZNC allegedly does not allow second coursers to practice there. I tried to email the NZNC to inquire about the matter but they haven't sent me any reply. Would you be so kind to do a bit of information gathering if they really absolutely won't accept second coursers? Thanks in advance.

I'm ok with the IELTS. I actually also started for an immigrant visa for the US and sat in both CGFNS and NCLEX and passed both, but since I may have to wait for 5 years or more for a chance of working in the US, I would like to try NZ or OZ...

Hello to oneproudigorot,
Interesting you've ask me about second courser, bec that is my next info to share.
OK, it's not about second courser. It's about your training as a nurse, knowledge, competence, post grad. experience, general safety, etc.

As I have explained in my previous entry, NCNZ is aware of the growing no. of school of nursing in the Philippine. They don't really know who monitor our standard of teaching(specifically nursing). I can't explain further in this matter as it will cover a lot of areas. So, the NCNZ assess every applicant in an individualise basis.

Refer on the application form of NCNZ, there is a specific part there that only applies for Philippine applicants and that is about authentication(red ribbon, stamps here and signatures there,etc)bec. of fake documents, now they require the school course outline/syllabus apart from the TOR and RLE. This is one way for them(NCNZ) to assess if the school(in the Phil) has taught the standard equivalence of the nursing school of NZ.

Post Graduate experience is also important (even volunteer is good). This is the transition stage from student nurses to staff nurses. This is where they can perhaps assess your ability to work independently, confidence, decision making, trouble shooting, interaction with your own patient/s, etc. That's also why Prof reference is required.

I'm not saying that a new grad is not accepted as I said they assess it individually. If you have all the gear then you're ready as they say.

I'm not sure what you're doing now in terms of work, but I guess if you're interested to work in NZ, give it a go.

All the best