Bc ???

Gator,SN · Jun 1, 2003

Oraibi,

HELLO! Welcome to the Boards! I hope that you stick around and post often. Good luck with the move!

Gator

fergus51 · Jun 1, 2003

Hello!

I just moved from BC to Ontario, and can tell you that the resources in BC aren't that much different from hospitals in the states. The bigger hospitals have the better staffing and there are several places in the Vancouver or Victoria areas I wouldn't mind working in at all. The main problem I had was a lack of regular full time and the political situation which has resulted in hospital bed closures all over the province. I am sure you could find full time in the Fernie area, but you have to accept that working in a rural place means a lot less of the conveniences that you could have in Vancouver. The upside is the relatively low cost of living and the beauty of the area.

As far as red tape:

I had to go to the States to write the NCLEX as well and could only be informed of my results by mail which took 5 weeks (this was from the Minnesota BON). When I wrote the CNAT I also got the results by mail in about 5 weeks, so it really isn't much different. I certainly wish the US and Canada could work something out where they endorse eachother's nursing lisences!

oraibi · Jun 2, 2003

Fergus51 wrote:

I am sure you could find full time in the Fernie area, but you have to accept that working in a rural place means a lot less of the conveniences that you could have in Vancouver. The upside is the relatively low cost of living and the beauty of the area.

Oraibi queried:

when you say less conveiniences, do you mean as

in good chinese resturaunts or like MRI's?

btw . . . BC has an agency in place devoted to

recruiting health care workers:

http://www.healthmatchbc.org/

re: reciprocation ~ i talked to one of the recruiters

in BC and they said that they used to have a

reciprocal licensing agreement with the u.s.

(back in the 70's or 80's)

how's that for progress!?

in addition to the mountains i have had a long-

standing interest in the arctic and was wondering

if anyone has ever worked in nunavet of the nw

territories or anywhere up near the arctic circle

i was searching on the web and saw they actually

have programs in arctic nursing . . .

i would second the nomination someone made for

wisconsin as a nice place to live and work . . . which

i part of what makes the prospect of leaving more difficult.

thanks for the feedback!

~oraibi

Sarah, RNBScN · Jun 2, 2003

RE: Nunavet try Medhunter.com

They have alot of posting for Nunavet and other areas of the great white north. They have both Canadian, USA, and Europe postings.

Best of luck.

fergus51 · Jun 2, 2003

I mean MRIs and specialists when I say conveniences, I think Fernie has a few good restaurants thanks to the tourist industry.

BC probably used to have reciprocity with the US because until the 70s or so Canadian nurses wrote the same exam as American nurses did.

aginggracefully · Aug 21, 2006

Hello. I am really new to this and so I hope I get this message to you successfully. I just got back from Nelson, BC. I also would like to relocate up there. In fact, my husband and I just bought a little-fixer-upper in the Slocan Valley. I poked around and didn't get much info. It sounds like you got more than I. I spoke to a nurse in Nelson, though, who said there was reciprocity with the USA!!?? She gave me a website (that I have lost) to write to. It is something like "RNCBC". Have you started the process yet?

I have another idea. I have 2 friends who travel and actually like it. They say even if the job is really crappy, they know it is just for 2 months and the money is great. I was thinking about taking travel assignments in Seattle, Idaho, Wisconsin, etc, working for 2 months at a time, and then going to B.C. just to enjoy life for a couple months at a time.

What do you think about that? Write soon, Robin

HUCtoRNBScN · Aug 29, 2006

Hello All,

I currently work as a unit clerk on Vancouver Island, in BC. I have only worked as a UC for the past 3 months, but I can tell you that BC is in desperate need of nurses. I've decided to go back to school next year for my BScN, and I can be guaranteed a job while I am still in my 3rd year. There are so many postings on the health authorities websites. They are willing to pay relocation fees for new nurses, and will often give signing bonuses. BC is a great place to live. The larger cities, such as Victoria and Vancouver, can be a bit pricey if you are looking for a house, but the smaller towns are significantly less expensive. There are a lot of smaller cities just outside of the bigger cities, so you could make the commute easily, in little time. On one of the floors where I work, we have atleast 3 brand new undergrad students, working part-time and going to school. Check out the local health authorities website, they five lots of insight into what it's like to live in BC. Or check out the tourism BC site.

www.viha.ca

www.northernhealth.ca

www.interiorhealth.ca

www.vch.ca

www.fraserhealth.ca

www.hellobc.com

Hope these help!