Moving to Florida - Do I have the right qualification?

suzanne4, RN · Dec 30, 2005

Hi all,
My husband and I want to move to Florida from England. I am currently in my 2nd year of training, so it's a very long term plan!
From what I have so far learnt, I need a year's post-reg experience, and to pass the NCLEX. It also says I need to be RGN/RN qualified, not RSCN. When (hopefully) I qualify, I won't be an RSCN, but RN(Child) as I have followed the child branch. In our first year we covered Adult/Child/Mental Health and to an extent Maternity.
So, as an RN(Child) will I be able to go through the process or will I need to retrain to RN(Adult)?
Hop this makes sense, I'm confused!
x

Sorry, but your training will be lacking the adult training and will need to be completed. This isn't specfic to Florida, but the entire US. The US does not require that you have experience in your country to work here.

Please do a search on either the International forum or the UK forum to see what you will need to do.

Silverdragon102, BSN · Dec 30, 2005

unfortunately UK training does not cover everything needed for US working, you need set hours (not sure how many top of head) in mental health, paeds, general, psychiatry and maternal. You may be able to make some hours up with your university if they are willing to help (not all will) the other option is wait until you qualify do CES with CGFNS and they will let you know what hours you are short and then try and find a nursing school either here or abroad which is accredited and gain extra training there. this link is one of a few which asks similar question

https://allnurses.com/forums/f124/adult-nurses-wanting-work-usa-119906.html?highlight=training

Good luck

suzanne4, RN · Dec 30, 2005

It is much easier to make up the hours if you are Adult trained, rather than Peds trained. You will be missing much of the core that is required over here.

uknursingstudent · Dec 31, 2005

Thanks all,

But of a downer really. I've looked on the Florida Board website and can't see anything about what the actual number of hours are. I did see about some companies that evaluate your course to see if it is sufficient.

Frankly I feel very frustrated that despite doing a foundation year including theory and practice across all fields this is still not enough. It seems that to get a paeds job in USA, I have to have less experience of children's nursing, and more in areas I am not going to need. I could end up applying for a NICU post with no NICU experience by swapping to adult branch. It really seems to make no sense at all. But if that's the system, that's the system!

Still hoping for a way through this, don't particularly want to switch branch, and definitely can't afford the course in Canada!

x

Silverdragon102, BSN · Dec 31, 2005

Thanks all,
But of a downer really. I've looked on the Florida Board website and can't see anything about what the actual number of hours are. I did see about some companies that evaluate your course to see if it is sufficient.
Frankly I feel very frustrated that despite doing a foundation year including theory and practice across all fields this is still not enough. It seems that to get a paeds job in USA, I have to have less experience of children's nursing, and more in areas I am not going to need. I could end up applying for a NICU post with no NICU experience by swapping to adult branch. It really seems to make no sense at all. But if that's the system, that's the system!
Still hoping for a way through this, don't particularly want to switch branch, and definitely can't afford the course in Canada!
x

I wouldn't go through the companies advertised, you as a health care worker have to go through CGFNS so wait until you have finished and do CES that will tell you what hours you are short on. It has to cover both theory aswell as practical hours

suzanne4, RN · Jan 1, 2006

Sorry, but it is better that you find out now, then get surprised later.

Belinda-wales, RN · Jan 2, 2006

Hi if you reaaly want to work in the US and you can changew I would change to adult branch now you could always specialise in child nursing at a later date being an RN adult branch would give you better oppotunity of moving to US

uknursingstudent · Jan 2, 2006

Thank you all for the information, I will talk to my tutor about it next week and see where to go from here.

x

english_nurse · Jan 3, 2006

Thank you all for the information, I will talk to my tutor about it next week and see where to go from here.
x

hi, i took NCLEX in june and am waiiting for my I140 to come :banghead: anyway, i had obs= 67 theory 112 clinical, peads 67 theory 120 clinical, mental health 67 theory 105 clinical

these hours were on my transcrip and were enough to allow me to have an american licence

i hope this might help im not sure of the minimum requirements as apparently it is a closly guarded secret (according to OGP) and we all know they are always right!

i think its really tough for nursing students in the uk at the moment, at my trust they cant get jobs as there is a recruitment freeze and they cant go to the usa as they havnt got the right amount of hours to take NCLEX.

good luck with it all i hope the information helps.

cariad · Jan 4, 2006

it appears that each state requires different hours, so theres no way of knowing what one place will accept and another say that you are short in specific areas.

the credentials evaluation service done through cgfns seems to be the way to go for us brits.

suzanne4, RN · Jan 4, 2006

Each state has their own requirements, as well as CGFNS with the Visa Screen Certificate. The hours will vary between states.

It also depends on how your school split up the hours when they list them on your transcripts. There are so many variables. Do not rely on what an agency tells you, but do your own homework in this.

What worked for one doesn't always work for the second.