Move to Canada

Silverdragon102, BSN · May 14, 2009

Moved to the International forum where you can find several threads re working and moving to Canada

Please take the time to read them

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · May 14, 2009

It isn't easy to come to Canada and become a nurse. And it's getting harder by the day. The following is taken from the blog created by the CEO of Alberta Health Services:

"In the meantime, we'll have to tighten our belts further. So I've put further brakes on external recruitment (no Virginia, this is not a freeze. Read my lips: Brakes, not stop). Essentially, there'll need to be more senior approval of all external recruitment action." (Dr Stephen Duckett)

"Dr Duckett, you mentioned that you've put "the brakes on external recruitment" and have stressed that this is not a freeze. From where I stand, things have frozen when it comes to hiring necessary staff. Specifically, by putting on the brakes, Maternity leaves are not being filled. How long do you plan to put the brakes on? Babies don't wait for budgets to be settled. By not allowing Maternity leaves to be filled, overtime of remaining staff to cover those vacant positions will increase. In my mind, that's not really "tightening our belts further." (comment from patient care manager)

Alberta, until very recently, had a large budget surplus and was actively recruiting abroad. Despite the need for many people to undergo SEC assessment, Alberta was hiring at a pace that left the rest of Canada in the dust. Now we are not even being permitted to fill temporary positions. This speaks volumes; it suggests that other provinces will also be "tightening their belts" and there will be no openings even for other Canadians.