Any Aussie nurses that went overseas and came back to work as RN?

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Hi There

I just wanted to find out if any Aussie nurses who have went overseas for one or two years to work in non nursing jobs. Upon return back to Australia to work as nurses again did you get support to regain confidence and skills in the wards you went to work in.

Pretty much my case scenario is that i am in Canada and most of you would be aware of the regulations in Canada for International Nurses who come over to work, that if you do not have Pediatric or Maternity skills, you upgrade. I havent done the courses as yet and I have had only one year nursing experience back in Brisbane and now I feel that I am not working as a nurse that my confidence in returning back to Oz, is low and now concerned about any support as I have already done one year in Graduate Nurse and then flew to Canada?

You see they dont tell you a great lot about the courses until you arrive here, the cost, the duraton and I am like arrgggggggghhhhhhhhhhh. So working as a Non nurse and just trying to survive and contemplating my return back to Oz this spring?

Would appreciate if you know of anyone who had kind of similar circumstance or yourself too. Thank you heaps.

kind regards

Kylie:p

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Specializes in CTICU.

I haven't had the same experience, obviously, but I worked in industry for 3.5 years and didn't work in nursing (although I was still in a hospital environment). Went back to clinical work last year.. it was slightly nerve-wracking, but I notified the place I was working at and they were quite supportive. I was working in ICU and they just gave me stable patients until I felt a bit more confident.

Are you back just to work, or to do courses?

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Hi there Ghillbert

Thank you for your reply. I am in Canada at the moment doing non nursing work maybe courses to upgrade if I choose to stay on but if I returned to Australia I will be definetly working as an RN.

Are you in Brisbane?

kind regards

Kylie

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Specializes in Community, Renal, OR.

Hi,

I have an RN friend who after graduation traveled the world for several years working as a nanny, cleaner, you name it she did it. When she came back she got a job no problem in a doctors clinic, then she progressed to community nursing and then back to acute care.

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Specializes in Medical.

A couple of my friends did the same thing - headed over to the UK for a year or two and decided to do bar work (or in one case, ended up running the backpackers she was staying in!) instead of nursing. They all said they were freaked by the idea of going back but as soon as they started the first shift it all came flooding back. At least one had done her grad year and another 8 months or so on my ward, no RN experience anywhere else, and her first shift was agency in another state, and it made no difference at all.

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hi, i spent a couple of years away from nursing a few years ago so that i could stay in the US doing ski seasons. did non health related work in restaurants, reservations, etc. didn't care one iota that i wasn't nursing, figure i'll be doing it for the best part of the next 30yrs, so who cares if you take a few years off. i came back home, went straight into agency work and found my footing the first day back. only problem i found was not knowing what room/cupboard equipment was kept and who to call for orders/xrays etc! funny how things don't change and you remember what to do. you can always apply for work and let them know you've been away from the game for a few years. often the unit will give you supernummery days/ or a week to get all the skills applicable in that area updated.

as for those extra maternity/peads subjects you need for Canada/USA... you can always do them back home if you ever decide to head back to Canada. i did them in the chance i rtn to the US to hit those slopes permanently. even thinking of returning this winter once all my visa screen stuff is thru. i think it's worth it as it keeps that door open in the future, plus i could earn about $30 an hr instead of $10 working for the ski resort!

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Question as part two of the question: Would you do Nursing Attendant job to get by to save money?

Because I am doing that right now and by gosh its killing me, so I am applying for other jobs to help the wellbeing of my body, as my back is killing me. Compared to Australia we do have the best manual handling tools back home.

As I also feel 'low' in the sense its bringing down my morale to do this job too. I am always looking for new jobs and I hope a change is on its way.

Just would like to know your perspective with this kind of job?

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think of it this way, at this stage you do meet the requirements to nurse as an RN in Canada, so until you complete those make up courses/exam you just have to do whatever work makes you happy and pays the bills. if you are getting no enjoyment out of your role as a nursing attendant then just leave, go get another job where you'll be happy. i've worked with nursing assistants in the past and find they do a great job with pt's. if it is the manual handling that is getting you down, then perhaps suggest to mgt how your job can be done easier with the implementation of safe manual handling equipment such as slide sheets, hover mats, hoists etc. if they don't listen, leave. think my mental and physical health is more important than just doing any old job, so think you need to weigh up what you want and what's going to make you happy. surely you can work elsewhere... doesn't have to be nursing related does it? in any case, at least now you can see how the canadian health system works and decide if you want to go ahead and get the extra work done to become registered there.

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Reading over your posts it is pretty clear that Canada and the hurdles to practice nursing here are not to your liking. I can relate, I moved to a different province and had to undergo a six month wait to have my credentials examined. I went from being a PN in a well respected hospital to working in a small town hospital as a glorified nursing attendant. It was demoralizing as the area of my experience was deemed to be "RN only" in my new province.

I couldn't accept the role and left. Luckily my husband's employer relocated us back to our home province and I returned to my old employer.

If you are not happy at work, leave.

The role of a Nursing Attendant is unglamourous, hard, dirty, and you are open to all sorts of verbal and emotional abuse from family members if you are in continuing care.

I would work in MacDonalds before I went back to LTC.

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Hi there

Well I left one Unit just recently because I felt demoralised there as an NA, getting treated like I know nothing and not part of a team. So I am still casual on the other unit that treats me like a human and part of a team, still hard work but at least some of the nurses help out.

I have forwarded resumes and just waiting back now for other jobs other than NA, so hopefully something happens soon.

For now I will stick on one unit till something better comes along, I have my eyes open all the time.

:)

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Specializes in Jack of all trades, and still learning.
I can relate, I moved to a different province and had to undergo a six month wait to have my credentials examined. I went from being a PN in a well respected hospital to working in a small town hospital as a glorified nursing attendant.

Wow. If a local Canadian RN needs to have that sort of verification between provinces - what hope do foreign nurses have? That must have been so hard for you!

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