Is it worth taking a Canadian specialty?

[Vanillanut, DNP, RN, APRN]

I am a Canadian, and I'm contemplating whether or not its worth persuing my emergency department specialty certificate here. My husband is American, and we live seperately (I live in Vancouver, he lives in washington). Are Canadian specialties recognized in the US?

[Fiona59]

You'd have to apply for a US practice permit to find out.

Education and experience is never a waste. Just makes you more employable than the next candidate who DOESN'T have it.

[ruralgirl08]

Hi,

I know a lot of Canadian post-grad Emergency certificate programs cover the content you need to know to pass the Canadian Nurses Association certification program in Emergency Nursing. A lot of book resources in the post grad programs are the Emergency Nurses Association recommended textbooks, which is the American Standard in ED nursing (and an international standard for that matter.) I think a post-grad certificate would provide you with an appropriate knowledge base to write the American ENC exam if you wanted to work in the states (you could write this right away), as well as, prepare you to write your Canadian certification exam if you wanted to get your CNA certification here (you need a certain amount ED hours to qualify to write the Canadian exam). I looked into these options myself. If you are currently working in the ED and have years of expereince, you could study to write your CNA certification, which involves a lot of self study, and skip the certificate. But having both would look very good on a resume. Check out ENA.org and Canadian Nurses Association websites for more information, on certification in both countries. Also check out workopolis.com, to see what employers in Canada are asking for.

I agree with the above poster, education is never a waste, it does show willingness to learn and initiative. Competition for nursing jobs is increasing. More experience + education= more qualified.