I want to make the most of my time while waiting in the dark

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Hello everyone! I am currently waiting on the assessment results for both my RN and RPN applications with the CNO. Like most internationally educated nurses, I am left in the dark waiting until they let know me whether I am eligible to take the exams or not... My only dismay on the CNO's process is that they can't provide a timeframe on how long the applicant must wait.

So now that I am in this dilemma, i am planning to just go ahead and take up the bridging program for internationally educated nurses. Most of the time anyway especially for the most recent applications, CNO requires upgrade on the education right? or the assessment says the nursing program is not at par with the nursing program of Ontario? Which has a better bridging program: Centennial College, George Brown, or York University?

I might be just getting impatient.. frustrated.. you know the feeling of being left hanging in the dark... I miss the craziness of being a nurse.. an ER nurse.. I miss the crazy night shifts and the chaotic afternoon shifts.. I miss working. I never thought I would say that but yes. hehe..

Every regulatory body has its own policies and procedures along with changes to them every once and a while. There is no "one framework" that will work for everyone so be patient because very soon they will stop granting licences to IENs and require IENs to go through bridging programs to earn their licence.

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Specializes in Nutrition/Rheumatology/Oncology.
because very soon they will stop granting licences to IENs and require IENs to go through bridging programs to earn their licence.

Really? Where did you read this?

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Look at what's happening in Alberta.

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Statistics from CNO show the numbers of licences granted to IENs are decreasing year after year. The CNO has been pretty straight forward with their assessments. If an IEN completed their RN through a public educational institute they would have a higher chance of getting assessed as an RN in Ontario where as those who completed their education through private educational institute will most likely be assessed as an RPN. The CNO are being pressured to not grant the RPN licence as a consolation so eventually IENs would not be granted those without demonstrating some local evidenced based practice.

In Ontario we no longer offer any nursing education (practical nursing diploma/BScN/BN) through private career colleges so the CNO places a great deal on an applicant's nursing education.

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Statistics from the CNO show the number of licences granted to IENs are increasing not decreasing

2007-541 licences granted

2008-674 "

2009-739 "

2010-772 "

2011-1,012 "

College of NURSES of Ontario | Office of the Fairness Commissioner

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Statistics from the CNO show the number of licences granted to IENs are increasing not decreasing

2007-541 licences granted

2008-674 "

2009-739 "

2010-772 "

2011-1,012 "

College of NURSES of Ontario | Office of the Fairness Commissioner

My apologies for the misinformation. I guess what I was trying to say was that they are not granting as many applications as before and how many of these applications are for RN?

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Statistics from CNO show the numbers of licences granted to IENs are decreasing year after year. The CNO has been pretty straight forward with their assessments. If an IEN completed their RN through a public educational institute they would have a higher chance of getting assessed as an RN in Ontario where as those who completed their education through private educational institute will most likely be assessed as an RPN. The CNO are being pressured to not grant the RPN licence as a consolation so eventually IENs would not be granted those without demonstrating some local evidenced based practice.

In Ontario we no longer offer any nursing education (practical nursing diploma/BScN/BN) through private career colleges so the CNO places a great deal on an applicant's nursing education.

Who is pressuring the CNO? Can you clarify what you mean by "so eventually IENs would not be granted those (RPN licences) without some local evidenced based practice?"

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Who is pressuring the CNO? Can you clarify what you mean by "so eventually IENs would not be granted those (RPN licences) without some local evidenced based practice?"

Dishes, the granting of PN practice permits to IEN's who fail to meet RN standards has long been a sore spot to working LPNs. It's been mentioned at every AGM of my provincial college.

As many posters on this forum have said the LPN designation is NOT a consolation prize for inadequately prepared IENs.

I personally know of one IEN who failed both CRNE and CPNRE three times and was removed from the hospital I work in.

LPNs will never be granted the chance to upgrade their education in the same manner as these IENs and be able to sit CRNE. It's a form of discrimination to say that inadequately prepared IENs after passing CPRNE and doing a bridge (which isn't available to Canadian educated PNs) can write CRNE.

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I don't see an analytically reasoned argument for denying the opportunity to write the CPNRE. The base education is the same whether a PN or BScN and and both meet the entry to practice requirements for PN. CNO is not concerned with emotional reasoned arguments or anecdotes from nurses who are upset because it is a sore spot. I would still like to know who toronto_nurse thinks is pressuring the CNO and what their reasons are.

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Specializes in Palliative.

Do you consider the post LPN program at Athabasca to not be a "bridging" program? I don't know that much about it, but it was always kind of portrayed that way by people who took it.

SIAST/U of S actually had a pilot bridging program for a very short time (basically existed only in my year) where the LPNs integrated into the BScN program at the end of second year. All the LPNs in the program did quite well (and most of them took the three year exit, which meant about a year and a half of school), but for some reason this was something basically everyone wanted very badly to fail. Not sure why, but we heard from several sources that no one wanted it to be successful. Would like to know the politics going on there.

LPNs will never be granted the chance to upgrade their education in the same manner as these IENs and be able to sit CRNE. It's a form of discrimination to say that inadequately prepared IENs after passing CPRNE and doing a bridge (which isn't available to Canadian educated PNs) can write CRNE.

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Specializes in Palliative.

Well, we are frequently told that a PN education isn't the same as a BScN education. It's one of the reasons "bridging" is discouraged. If, as is argued, the focus is different (with PN being more practice or trade based, while BScN is more concerned with theoretics and social justice) the two aren't and can't be interchangeable. This is the almost universal argument against LPNs being credited with their experience and education towards a BScN.

Logically, that sword cuts both ways. If they really are so fundamentally different, then it stands to reason that a person with a BScN wouldn't have the practical and skills based training to do a PN job. If indeed PNs are "trained" while BScNs are "educated", then even a well educated BScN isn't properly trained to be a PN.

The "sore spot" is over the fact that this argument is used to create a double standard; it's only ever invoked to keep PNs from getting higher education, never to keep IENs from being able to practice as PNs. In essence it's simply used to say that BScN is superior rather than different.

I don't see an analytically reasoned argument for denying the opportunity to write the CPNRE. The base education is the same whether a PN or BScN and and both meet the entry to practice requirements for PN. CNO is not concerned with emotional reasoned arguments or anecdotes from nurses who are upset because it is a sore spot. I would still like to know who toronto_nurse thinks is pressuring the CNO and what their reasons are.
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AU isn't a true bridge. It's an entry to a degree programme. LPNs get a specified number of credits but it still takes over two years to do. Depends on how many post secondary credits are transferrable.

Up until the disaster of the overseas hiring in '07/08, it was always clearly stated that only graduates of a recognized practical nursing course could sit for CPNRE. We were all under the impression it was permitted to save Capital Health and CARNA from looking like complete fools for hiring so many nurses who didn't meet the standards to write CRNE. It was meant to be a one off, not a solution.

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