January 2009 Visa Bulletin

suzanne4, RN · Nov 26, 2008

Yeah,you and suzanne are singing the same tune perhaps because you are suzanne.....I dont know how many names suzanne used in this forum!!!!

There is only one name that I use here, but funnier from all of you is that the one that you are complaining about is actually a Filipina and who went thru the immigration process.

Take the time to do some reading on this site, there are many other Filipinos that are posting that are actually in the US and all over CA and posting what is happening in the area where they live.

It is time to open your eyes and quit living in a dream world.

It is not the responsibility of any country to have to provide you with a job, that is something for your own country to deal with first and foremost. Since there are about 500,000 unemployed RNS there now and another 88,000 writing the exam this week. that means that it is up to your country. Each country needs to provide for their own citizens first, that is the responsibility of a government, not one to take everyone else because their country is unable to or will not put an end to the puppy mills that they have in place there.

There are still less than 10,000 green cards per year for those from your country and that includes spouses and children; so please do the math. It means that perhaps 3,000 nurses at best, but you need to also count other professions as well. That is not going to make a drop out of the bucket for a very long time.

suzanne4, RN · Nov 26, 2008

One can continue to believe what their employer is telling them or one can listen to what the US government is saying since they are the ones that issue the visas.

If you do not like what is posted here, then go someplace else to play. But we are not going to change what is being posted because someone wants to live in a dream world and not face reality of what is happening in the US.

You also forget about the little issue of not having credit when you arrive, so chances of getting a car loan are going to be non-existant. Not like what it was two years ago and you could get a loan right away, etc. Furniture is going to be the same thing, as well as utilities for an apt.

But remember, those of us that are posting here and aware of what is truly happening, do not know anything.

Nurse!Nurse!Hello? · Nov 26, 2008

I'm not at all surprised by your response. You have been singing the same tune and saying the same things over and over. I don't have to explain my sources as they came from nurses also working in America. Again, it depends on the state, and maybe your area has been having lay offs, but it is not true in some other parts. You are not the only nurse in America who can give us ideas and views on what's happening. We also consider what others have to say on what's going on.

Glad to hear you are interested in what other nurses have to say! I'm a nurse, an American citizen, and I'm not Suzanne. Although I don't think the US is "sinking like the Titanic" as another poster said, times are tough, and getting tougher. I don't think we've seen the worst of it yet; many Americans believe that it's going to get worse before it gets better.

Hospitals and nursing homes are making cuts in staffing. Many have hiring freezes, and salary freezes. Nurses who were thinking about retiring have decided that they need to keep working because of the uncertainty about the economy. Retrogression and visa availability is only part of the picture. The larger part involves whether jobs are actually available, and whether it is financially adventageous for a healthcare provider to bear the additional cost of hiring foreign nurses at this time. With layoffs, more US nurses enter the pool of applicants for available jobs, decreasing the need to import foreign nurses.

Many posters in many posts are frustrated and angry over the current retrogression. Many don't seem to realize that immigrating to any country is a privilege, not a right. Immigration is based on the needs and whims of each individual country. If economics change, policies change. Some posters seem to think that simply because they have spent the time and money to attend nursing school they should be rewarded with the opportunity to emigrate and work as nurses. Some act as if they are entitled to do so, and are angry that they cannot. They do not seem to understand that it is not the responsibility of the US--or any other country--to provide jobs for foreigners. Each country needs to take care of its own first. If your country is not taking care of you, your anger and frustration should be directed at your government and policies, not ours!

Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN · Nov 26, 2008

Also first and last months rent and if you don't have credit you need a co- signer. If your rent is $1000 you would need $3000+ to move in. Also you will need to put a deposit for heating and electricity since you don't have credit.

The bigger issue is that nursing jobs are being eliminated. Nurses who are being hired are seasoned nurses since they are more cost effective.

Areas that have positions open, are home care and you need a car and nursing experience. When I worked in home care you would need money for parking and gas and it would take several weeks to get the money back. You also need a driver's license and a clean driving record. Also got lots of parking tickets that you have to pay with your own money.

Tough times in the US, I read that some of our economic mess is spilling into Canada.

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Nov 26, 2008

Things in Canada are definitely being negatively affected by the economic crisis in the US. Our dollar, which was trading at near par with the US dollar for most of the summer, tanked badly and one day last week was as low as 77 cents US. While that has a positive affect on our balance of trade, it drives the cost of many everyday commodities which are imported from south of the border up and up. For us here in Alberta, the huge drop in gas and oil prices has a big impact on our economy because those two items are our big economic drivers. The petroleum economy is suffering so there have been slowdowns and layoffs in the oil patch and development of new fields (and the associated construction spinoffs) have been halted. Lots of people are out of work even here in the most prosperous province in the country.

Another possible impact I could foresee is that nurses in the US who have lost their jobs will start looking at Canada as very attractive, particularly those in the border states. The process of hiring nurses from the US is much simpler and more straight-forward than it is to hire from offshore, and the expense to the employer much lower, so guess what that means. There are also a significant number of expatriot Canadian nurses in the US who may take this opportunity to return home. The ripple effect will be felt around the world for a long time to come.

Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN · Nov 27, 2008

I never thought of US nurses coming to Canada, but it would be an option. I am use to living in the cold and know how to drive in the snow. I think American nurses could adapt to Canadian Nursing, when I was in graduate school there were several Canadian nurses and although nursing practices do vary there are more issues in common than not.

Several questions, as a US nurse could I cross the boarder and take the CRNE? Also if a Canadian Hospital had a choice of hiring a US nurse with experience, would the US nurse have preference over another country? I know in Quebec I would have to be fluent in French. But what about other parts of Canada?

When I was visiting Halifax, when I was asked where I was from, which is Boston, the tour guide told me how grateful Halifax was to Boston due to the fact 1917 the city was struck by a horrible fire and Boston was a first responder. In appreciation every year a contest is held, which a local farmer nominates a Christmas Tree which will be displayed in Boston. I never knew that the beautiful Xmas tree is an annual gift for a debt that has been long paid off. Sorry that is a bit off topic, but it is such a great story about friendship and appreciation.

suzanne4, RN · Nov 27, 2008

And then since some of you wanted to hear from others besides me, you have and all they are doing is emphasizing what I keep writing about. There is no reason to bury your head in the sand and think that things are just going to blow over; they are not in the near future. And this is what we are telling you to open your eyes to. And yes, it does not matter what was happening a year ago, or even two months ago. Things have changed drastically here in the US in just a very short time, not sure that even that many expected it to get this bad and this quick and it is only going to get better before it has the chance of getting better if you have been following what is actually happening around the world with the banking industry as a start. Hospitals borrow money to meet their expenses until insurance payments come in, etc. When they are unable to borrow the money, then hopefully you can figure what is happening.

Add into it the fact that an American be trained in just two years for the ADN, and they will write the same NCLEX-RN exam and function in the same role as BSN, but they have the added advantage of already having experience in the US system, know the lab values here as well as the medications, etc. And usually the managers are familiar with them so they get first chances of hiring as well. Add in the fact that enough new grad programs to do around in hospitals for even the Americans and then perhaps you can understand what we are telling you. And no wait for immigration either.

With what is happening in CA right now, you do not want to be getting a visa now, no matter what you think; you are not going to be able to live as you had heard from relatives or from someone that knows someone. Just is not happening, and the other poster thought was me even posted that there were several Filipinos laid off in her facility as well. No one is immune from it. And if one is laid off, then the facility cannot bring over any new nurses and offer them to start now. Another thing that one may not realize is that the majority of the nurses in CA are covered under a union, and the union actually has to approve of the job offer as well before it can be submitted to immigration along with the I-140 and that is not going to be happening right now either.

Sure, you can take your chances with a nursing home but you need to be aware of one of the highest rates of losing a license is in this area of nursing as well. One loses a license, then the VSC gets pulled and so does the green card. Guess that was not thought about either.

One wish is for Americans to be able to return to their jobs, without that; and there will be no one coming over here to work. Other issue is that the US government is currently investigating each and every H1-B application, one of the requirements is that the nurse be a specialist. If they are coming over for training, then they do not have experience in that field and they are subject to having their temporary visa cancelled at anytime. And the employer can cancel at any time as well. Would not wish to have to live with that over my head.

So be careful what you wish for and have a very happy holiday.

velocity25 · Nov 27, 2008

Glad to hear you are interested in what other nurses have to say! I'm a nurse, an American citizen, and I'm not Suzanne. Although I don't think the US is "sinking like the Titanic" as another poster said, times are tough, and getting tougher. I don't think we've seen the worst of it yet; many Americans believe that it's going to get worse before it gets better.
Hospitals and nursing homes are making cuts in staffing. Many have hiring freezes, and salary freezes. Nurses who were thinking about retiring have decided that they need to keep working because of the uncertainty about the economy. Retrogression and visa availability is only part of the picture. The larger part involves whether jobs are actually available, and whether it is financially adventageous for a healthcare provider to bear the additional cost of hiring foreign nurses at this time. With layoffs, more US nurses enter the pool of applicants for available jobs, decreasing the need to import foreign nurses.
Many posters in many posts are frustrated and angry over the current retrogression. Many don't seem to realize that immigrating to any country is a privilege, not a right. Immigration is based on the needs and whims of each individual country. If economics change, policies change. Some posters seem to think that simply because they have spent the time and money to attend nursing school they should be rewarded with the opportunity to emigrate and work as nurses. Some act as if they are entitled to do so, and are angry that they cannot. They do not seem to understand that it is not the responsibility of the US--or any other country--to provide jobs for foreigners. Each country needs to take care of its own first. If your country is not taking care of you, your anger and frustration should be directed at your government and policies, not ours!

Nope, I'm not angry at anyone at all. :coollook:

velocity25 · Nov 27, 2008

All your comments are duly noted. But I have to say I will stick to my original post. I know there is a crisis, but I think that lay-offs and hiring freezes are not happening at every hospital in America as what my relative RNs are saying. And I believe them. Nothing you say will change that, sorry.

Also, I know there is a credit crunch, it's hard to own or finance a car and a house right now, but fortunately I got that covered.

Good day to you all! :smokin:

Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN · Nov 27, 2008

I watched the news today, Medicare is reducing funding, patients are being refused service that is not the standard of care. Every hospital I have contact with is in financial trouble. In my position, I am on Nation wide conference calls almost everyday, heck even CMS ( Centers for Medicare and Medcaid) stated that they are cutting back on services. I have not heard one hospital doing well financially. My daughter who lives in NYC states several hospitals are closing due to finances. My son who lives in Arizona says things are tough in Arizona. A close family friend tells me her home health aide is a RN who can't find a RN position.

This year all hospitals had to submit outpatient quality information to Medicare next year reporting is not required, but required again in 2010, the reason is that there is no funding for Medicare to administrate the program. Insurance companies are sending in SWAT like teams that audit charts looking for overcharges.

If there are hospitals that are doing so well they are having a hard time staffing, please post names and locations otherwise I have to look at my daily life of interacting with a nation wide network and listening to my daily news and family.

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Nov 27, 2008

I never thought of US nurses coming to Canada, but it would be an option.
Several questions, as a US nurse could I cross the boarder and take the CRNE? Also if a Canadian Hospital had a choice of hiring a US nurse with experience, would the US nurse have preference over another country? I know in Quebec I would have to be fluent in French. But what about other parts of Canada?

You could absolutely cross the border and write the CRNE without any problem. You wouldn't need any papers except your passport and the documentation CNA wants. You could arrange to write in either Halifax or Fredericton. Nurses from the US with experience would be hired first after other Canadians. We share a common language, common culture (for the most part, with the huge exception of Quebec), common experiences and many similarities in our practice, so the transition would be fairly easy. I work with a nurse who moved her last winter from California and she has had relatively few problems making the switch. As for the French thing, Quebec is a hard nut to crack even for other Canadians. Eastern Ontario hospitals may include "Fluency in French an asset" in the posting, but it wouldn't be an impediment to being hired. The rest of the country is pretty much open at the moment. The four western provinces have the higest pay scales.

When I was visiting Halifax, when I was asked where I was from, which is Boston, the tour guide told me how grateful Halifax was to Boston due to the fact 1917 the city was struck by a horrible fire and Boston was a first responder. In appreciation every year a contest is held, which a local farmer nominates a Christmas Tree which will be displayed in Boston. I never knew that the beautiful Xmas tree is an annual gift for a debt that has been long paid off. Sorry that is a bit off topic, but it is such a great story about friendship and appreciation.

In 1917 a munitions ship exploded in Halifax harbour, killing thousands of people. It was a true disaster and the help received from the wonderful folks of Maine and Massachusetts helped keep it from being much worse. Of course they're grateful.

yaddybrogan · Nov 27, 2008

Hi. Reading all of these posts for the past 3 months finally made me decide to join and share my thoughts. A sad reality, but I strongly agree with what our moderators and some of the members of this forum says on the present picture of AMERICA and its bad impact to our profession.
Like most of you here, I consider myself as a foreign-nurse who learned to love and embraced America, while at the same time still showing some degree of concern to my fellow country men, Filipinos.Proud to say,I am a graduate of one of the most prestigious nursing school in the Philippines, UST, came over to USA and worked as a nurse roughly 14 years ago. America at that time is great, booming while already boomed, splendid and such heaven..not until recently that everyone got trapped with this economic menace.
Almost evreyone is affected and solution to this problem is far at sight till this time. I've been working with one of the Biggest hospital here in Sacramento, big as it is, still has no escape to this crisis. The Hospital where I am presently working just recently announced that the Hospital's census for the past three months dropped to almost 40%, and is expecting to flunk more in the coming months, and Hospital's income went down as well. Cost effective measures were taken. The CEO had just announced that there will be job lay-offs, in fact, 50 nurses has been out of the floor already since the crisis begun, and is expecting more and more lay-offs in the coming months. Sad to say, 4 filipinos and 1 Indian were included in the said lay-off. Popular in recruiting foreign nurses in the past, but with the latest turn-out of events, CEO declared freeze in hiring local and foreign nurses indefinitely.
This is just the scenario of what is happening with my facility. There may be hundreds of facilities out there also experiencing same, maybe even worse. This economic crisis is pandemic. Amongst all, we suffer the most because we are already here, there's no way out but to find survival measures instead. I am not discouraging my countrymen to stop dreaming America, but America isn't everything. Try to look for nursing opportunities outside USA, it might be more exciting than USA NOW. Again I shall say, I maybe a FULL PLEDGE AMERICAN NOW, but I still have this concern to my kababayans, and a good advice for now is, say bye bye to your US Dream in the mean time, don't dwell to much on it. Hard to get out of depression when things wont work at all.

whats the wrong with them.we are from India dreaming today or tomorrow will be there,actually now we are getting affraid.morethan one year back we got the license also.but due to retrogresion is on pending.Have hopes and prayers to good futures be there.

really for NCLEX exam ,years we struggled. even for CANADA also hearing they are not hiring foreign nurses.God help us.