Overseas Work...In Germany?

Silverdragon102, BSN · Sep 19, 2016

Moved to the International Nursing forum

Hopefully you are fluent in German, there are a few threads discussing registration in Germany and how things are.

nutella, MSN, RN · Sep 19, 2016

I am still a student as well as a career changer (I have an MSW and am seeking my BSN to later obtain my APN-Oncology), and would like to work in Germany. However I have been researching a great deal and am finding a bit of conflicting information. It appears that nurses are not treated as well in this particular country or am I not quite understanding. If anyone may have any advice or thoughts about this, please advise!?!?!?
Thanks so much!
Lydia

You got that right.

Nursing is not highly regarded in Germany and some other countries in Europe. The idea is that nurses are just there to wipe behinds and do "dirty work" or function as an assistant to the doctor.

Although my experience in Germany working mostly critical care/ICU was not as above, working on the regular floors is rough all around. The nurse is often also the one to do primary care and basic care including washing patients and CNA like in the US are not really common. Instead, most hospitals have nursing students who spend a lot of time on the floors and who will provide a lot of basic care as part of their nursing school education. Also, there is no advanced practice nurse role (there is a PA role though) and the scope of nursing is different.

Search for other posts that includes links to get more information about how to become a nurse in Germany. You would also need to be fluent in German and pass a language exam and have a work permit.

Think about why you would want to go to Germany and compare everything carefully. You may find out that Germany is great for a vacation but not necessarily for work as a nurse...

divobari · Sep 26, 2016

My wife and I lived in Germany for a few years. She tried to find work as a nurse through the military. They proved to be flakes. They will give priority to service members and their spouses, and native Germans. My some was born in a German hospital. It is VERY different. Nurses tend to be more like CNAs. They are not paid well, but no one really earns much in Germany. Nurses tend to come from out of the country. In order to work in Germany, you need to be at niveau B1 of German fluency. That is super basic proficiency. I would start with the military and get over to Germany to get acclimated with the language and culture. You need both before you can start working as a nurse. Good luck!!

nutella, MSN, RN · Sep 27, 2016

My wife and I lived in Germany for a few years. She tried to find work as a nurse through the military. They proved to be flakes. They will give priority to service members and their spouses, and native Germans. My some was born in a German hospital. It is VERY different. Nurses tend to be more like CNAs. They are not paid well, but no one really earns much in Germany. Nurses tend to come from out of the country. In order to work in Germany, you need to be at niveau B1 of German fluency. That is super basic proficiency. I would start with the military and get over to Germany to get acclimated with the language and culture. You need both before you can start working as a nurse. Good luck!!

One thing I need to correct you - nurses in germany are not CNAs though they will perform more basic care than nurses in the US. What you do as a nurse depends on the floor, the hospital, and your speciality. The ICU/CC is pretty much the same, the same seems true for OR and specialty areas. On med/surg and maternal /OB/Gyn it varies a lot. Despite the fact that nursing is a great profession, it is not highly regarded in Germany. Also, because everybody has insurance and access to healthcare, you do not tend to see patient that run down the mill like in the US especially in areas with low income ...

I agree that what you get paid after they deduct everything - which is taxes, retirement, unemployment, and this and that (basically you are insured against everything and anything not by choice but because you have to and you have to pay retirement) there is only so much you have cash. But a lot of healthcare facilities have cheap housing and apartments. I lived in such one for some while with my hubby when we moved to a different area.