Nursing in France

[primrose201]

Hi everybody

This is longwinded, but please take the time to read. I want to pass on my experiences to help anybody wishing to work as a nurse in France.

Have read a forum thread about working as a nurse in France and just wanted to update and inform anybody thinking about moving to France to work in this profession. This is purely meant to help people think carefully before making a big decision to come here, as in my experience, things are not so easy...hopefully this will change though!

1) Getting your qualification recognised:

It's true that you need to go to the ARS (Agence Regionale de Santé) in your area to get the ball rolling for getting the equivalent of your qualification. Go to the website and download the application form for salaried (salarié) worker, even if you are not employed yet. This process is quite easy (for EU members, don't know about others) although takes some time. All certificates not in French need to be translated, and make sure that the translation dates no more than 3 months...can't understand why as the qualification does not change, but this is one idiosyncracy about the system in France.

2) You MUST speak French to a very good standard. To get issued the ADELI number (which qualifies you to work) you will go through an oral french exam. This wasn't too hard for me, but you must be able to communicate well. They told me I was ok but need to brush up on the medical terminology. Forget it if you don't know French, even if you don't plan to work in France, everyday life will be hard. The next step is to register with the Tableau de l'Ordre des Infirmiers and then you are ready.

3) Once all the paperwork is done, in my personal experience, finding work is harder than expected (for myself, anyway). I have years of experience, and have worked in a variety of areas. I do have one area of special experience, but that doesn't seem to count for much here. Also if you are a Theatre nurse, be aware that here you need a special qualification to work in this area (IBODE). This takes 9 months training to get. It holds no water if you have got theatres experience if you don't hold this qualification, but I believe that they are now thinking of changing this and accepting nurses with relevant experience without it..but not entirely sure.

Also, having also been a patient, I noticed that all the nurses were French. I have applied to work in clinics and hospitals to no avail. Have been searching for work for about 4-5 months and made numerous applications (mainly to retirement homes) with only 2 interviews (unsuccessful). I am very surprised and it is the first time in my professional life that I have had difficulties finding a job. I always got the job before, even when I lived in a country where I did not know the language fluently...I learnt it well after some time at work.

I am hoping that it is down to the slow pace at which things work here, and not because of other reasons. Will wait and see....

But if you are expecting (or needing) work fast here, don't. It is easier if you are single, you can work as an intérimaire (for agencies), since having children also makes it hard, when you employ a nanny you need a contract stating exact hours of work and days etc...

Anyway, that is all. France is a beautiful country with much to offer, but sometimes things are complicated.

Good luck. If anybody has any questions, fire away.

[Fiona59]

Thank you for sharing your experience. I often find that too many North American posters think the world is ready to open them with open arms.

European economies aren't what they used to be. They will hire their nationals before "outsiders".

[pyocianik]

Hi everybody!

Also if you are a Theatre nurse, be aware that here you need a special qualification to work in this area (IBODE). This takes 9 months training to get. It holds no water if you have got theatres experience if you don't hold this qualification, but I believe that they are now thinking of changing this and accepting nurses with relevant experience without it..but not entirely sure.

Ahem! You're mistaken on this one dear Primrose (love that Alias!)

You do not need to be a Graduated OR Nurse (Infirmiere De Bloc Operatoire Diplomee d'Etat, short: IBODE) to work in OR. Being a RN is sufficient. Studies for becoming a specialized OR nurse have been lengthened to 18 months for a couple of years now. This resulted in the death of most OR nursing schools since most of the surgery in France takes place in private practice settings that won't be able to send their staff off for 1 1/2 year while paying a stand-in while financing the student at the same time. Besides the FONGECIF which is the body funding Continuous education for employees from the private sector in France shortened the length of it's financing time down to 9 months. That's the second reason of the death of the schools (no students=no $!=> shop closes...):poop:Getting a student loan is almost impossible if you're over 30 unless you've got a smart and understanding banker who can draw up something, but that's the exception.

Nursing job offers vary widely in France depending the area where you are living.

In and around Paris you can quite easily get a job especially if you are experienced/trained in OR. Working for agencies is a good thing since it will enable you to gather experience in France. This will "thaw" potential recruiters' hesitations.

As I said in a couple of previous posts, starting at the American Hospital in Paris can make things a lot easier for you.

For those with OR experience; start with agencies. Once you got all your papers wrapped up, just step in and they'll write you up. Some agencies are under contract with the Assistance Publique des Hopitaux de Paris (APHP), they pay less but have a significant higher volume of missions which is good for you in order to gain experience. The other good thing about these agencies is that you can work out your own working schedule which enables you to hire a nanny more easily.

Work in public hospitals is usually less, sometimes MUCH less demanding than work in private settings where you are expected to be efficient and proficient right away, and there's also the fact that there is less staff to do the same amount of work in private settings than in public ones.

I hope this will help you a little. If you need further advice or adresses, I'll try my best to help you out since now I have more time left than when I was in France.

[primrose201]

Hello pyocianik,

Looks like I was misinformed by the agencies I signed up with, since I got that info from them...anyway, I am not looking to work in theatres so it doesn't matter for me personally. It was just a warning to others, but thanks for clearing that one up.

I will keep trying. I don't live in Paris, and there are no English speaking clinics in my area, but hopefully I will find something soon. The retirement homes are surprisingly high standard here, and pay well too. This is not what I was expecting to do but it seems to be the only thing available.

Do you happen to know of any good ways to find work in hospitals/clinics. I tried a few times to apply directly to them, but nothing came of that. Perhaps I am not doing something correctly. I usually go through pole-emploi where I believe most jobs are posted. Also joined many agencies.

Anyway, if you have any useful advice it would be appreciated.

Thanks