is the philippine local boards required for work in US?

suzanne4, RN · Feb 20, 2007

What do you plan to do after passing all the exams and waiting for the petition to be done?..It would take 12 months to two years before you could land to US..You could have enhance your nursing skills during that time..Why not work here in the Philippines while waiting for the petition??..It would take a very long time before you could complete all of those, you should have at least enhance yourself doing nursing works, adapting yourself to the real world of nursing which takes a lot of patience, hardwork and tolerance for stress..and not all who takes CG,NCLEX,TOEFL,IELTS passes for the first time..so the safest is to pass the LOCAL boards first before taking any foreign exams..with Philippine license, you can work as a nurse here regardless if you pass or dont pass US exams..at least, you can recall and enhance nursing skills you've learned from college, and you've got this chance to learn more and discover things which is new to you and find confidence when you work abroad..

Do not agree with that at all. Work as an RN in the Philippines is so very different from working in the US as an RN that it really does not make any difference. The skills that you learned in school again are quite different from the US in many respects. From the number of patients that you care for in the hospital, and yet, in the US you are legally responsible for doing a head to toe assessment on each of your patients on a daily basis in the hospital, something that you do not do in the Philippines. This includes listening to heart tones as well as breath sounds. And even more so in the specialty areas.

With the issues of the June, 2006 exam; and there is no guarantee that the nurse will even be able to get a job in a hospital for where they wish to work in the first place that pays. Volunteer work there does not count as work experience in the US.

jomos · Feb 22, 2007

My brother took the Philippine Boards twice and failed. Can he proceed to take the NCLEX or does he now have to pass the NLE since he had taken it?If he can proceed to take the NCLEX, what will his reply be when asked why he does not have a RN license in country of origin? :rolleyes:

suzanne4, RN · Feb 22, 2007

Suggest that he focus on passing the local NLE. The issue is that he took the exam, if it was never written, then there would not be an issue.

When did he take the exam? If one was this past June, he would need to pass the exam to qualify to get the Visa Screen Certificate and that is required to work in the US per US immigration.

brita_mylove · Mar 1, 2007

It is so sad to hear that someone could go straight and have VSC without a local license as long as they have a written explanation of why they did not take the local board and yet the june batch 2006 have to retake the exam again coz of the scam even if one is not guilty. Isn't it so unfair but then life is not always fair. :bluecry1:

lawrence01 · Mar 1, 2007

It is so sad to hear that someone could go straight and have VSC without a local license as long as they have a written explanation of why they did not take the local board and yet the june batch 2006 have to retake the exam again coz of the scam even if one is not guilty. Isn't it so unfair but then life is not always fair.

With due respect.. it is not "unfair". It wasn't a req't from the beginning so majority who knows this do not take the NLE anymore while those students who took the NLE has to disclose that they took it and they have to pass it. Failing the NLE will also not give them the VSC. Many are confuse about this. As long as someone took the NLE, one need to show that they pass it otherwise CGFNS wouldn't recommend re-taking test 3 and 5 anymore if it doesn't matter.

Suzanne has actually said this hundreds of times before that not to take it anymore if your plan is to go to the U.S. Some listened and were very happy that they didn't bother w/ it anymore, some did not and are now facing the consequences of their actions.

If you have friends yet to take the NLE and who have plans to go to the US better advice them not to take it anymore and just go straight w/ NCLEX and VSC. Advice them not to listen to people who says that the Phil. license is a requirement. Many listen to this advises from their professors who obviously have no experience applying for being a US RN. Even our BON (who advices the PRC Chairperson) do not know the requirements of the Visa Screen Certification as exemplified by their recent media interviews w/c CGFNS needed to correct publicly via their website.

brita_mylove · Mar 8, 2007

Well, I guess, in my part, it is too late coz nobody advised me. :scrying: We are totally confused as to what really matters, some says that CGFNS will not give you VSC if you have no NLE and yet here, you are saying, there's no need for NLE. I've been advising some classmates not to take it anymore as you say guys, it is not needed but some agencies requires it. Oh, well, we just have to brave the weather again and take the storm by its tail.:chair: Since, most of us plans to go to US, we have no choice.

lawrence01 · Mar 8, 2007

Well, I guess, in my part, it is too late coz nobody advised me. We are totally confused as to what really matters, some says that CGFNS will not give you VSC if you have no NLE and yet here, you are saying, there's no need for NLE. I've been advising some classmates not to take it anymore as you say guys, it is not needed but some agencies requires it. Oh, well, we just have to brave the weather again and take the storm by its tail.:chair: Since, most of us plans to go to US, we have no choice.

Take it from us. Phil. license not required if a nurse did not take the NLE at all from the start. Once a nurse takes the NLE, they are now bound to disclose they took it and bound to show that they pass it no matter what.

There are those that are actually planning on not disclosing they took NLE because of what happened to the June 2006 batch but since they took it, they have to show to CGFNS that they have passed it via the re-take. These very people very well know from the start that some one already advised them not to take it anymore if they do not have plans to practice in the Phil. that is why they are now having plans not disclose it, w/c is fraud. If they do not know or haven't been advised before they wouldn't even have it on their heads not to disclose the information. They knew from the start. They just chose the wrong advise and now they are suffering the consequences and where are now those who advised them to take it? No where to be found.

The local agencies in the Phil. always hand out shot-gun req'ts, w/c includes CGFNS Certification, even though not all States require it, w/c everyone should know by now since the CGFNS Certification was mistakenly taken for the Visa Screen Certification as the same thing recently in the local media and properly corrected.

sylvester_8 · Apr 6, 2007

hello guys! so you guys are telling that Phil. license is NOT a requirement to take NCLEX?

lawrence01 · Apr 6, 2007

hello guys! so you guys are telling that Phil. license is NOT a requirement to take NCLEX?

Just like we have said above your post. No, it isn't as long as you never took it at all. Many nurses has done this already, esp. those who really don't have any plans to practice nursing in the Philippines have never bothered to take the NLE and just went straight to taking the NCLEX for US licensure and even for visa screening but the big if is that if one already took the NLE you have to disclose you took it and you have to show that you passed it.

Bottom line is if you don't have plans in practicing nursing in the Philippines, don't bother to take it anymore. If you want or need to work as a nurse in the Philippines then you need to be licensed.

Hathaway · Apr 6, 2007

Lawrence,

Just something i'd like you to look and and hopefully clear up...

Few posts ago you stated that if one ever took the NLE, he'd have to pass it to qualify for the VSC. Hmmm.. Are we to understand that if one failed the exam, they necessarily are not qualified for the VSC?

Im looking at the VSC 2007 application form. Items 15 and 16 are the only items dealing with Registration/Licensing and Nursing Exams taken.

Item 15 only asks if one has ever been issued a License. (Not whether one has ever taken an exam as part of the requirement for an eventual license).

The Request for Registration/License is only needed if one was ever issued one by any licensing authority anywhere.

Item 16 does ask if the applicant has sat for nursing exams. But it specifically asks only if it applies to the CGFNS CP, NCLEX-RN, NCLEX-PN or the SBTPE exams. It doesnt have a box for "others".

Anyhow, while I do agree that fraud or anything of that sort would be totally unacceptable on the VSC application form, I dont think the applicant can be held "responsible" for nondisclosure of information that was not specifically requested for by the form. That would be plain wrong. (The applicant is not required to volunteer information that is not asked of him. Especially in this case wherein all written information is attested to and signed by the applicant.)

Kindly look that one over please and I'd like your comments too...

Thanks in advance for the input,

Hathaway.

lawrence01 · Apr 7, 2007

Lawrence,
Just something i'd like you to look and and hopefully clear up...
Few posts ago you stated that if one ever took the NLE, he'd have to pass it to qualify for the VSC. Hmmm.. Are we to understand that if one failed the exam, they necessarily are not qualified for the VSC?
Im looking at the VSC 2007 application form. Items 15 and 16 are the only items dealing with Registration/Licensing and Nursing Exams taken.
Item 15 only asks if one has ever been issued a License. (Not whether one has ever taken an exam as part of the requirement for an eventual license).
The Request for Registration/License is only needed if one was ever issued one by any licensing authority anywhere.
Item 16 does ask if the applicant has sat for nursing exams. But it specifically asks only if it applies to the CGFNS CP, NCLEX-RN, NCLEX-PN or the SBTPE exams. It doesnt have a box for "others".
Anyhow, while I do agree that fraud or anything of that sort would be totally unacceptable on the VSC application form, I dont think the applicant can be held "responsible" for nondisclosure of information that was not specifically requested for by the form. That would be plain wrong. (The applicant is not required to volunteer information that is not asked of him. Especially in this case wherein all written information is attested to and signed by the applicant.)
Kindly look that one over please and I'd like your comments too...
Thanks in advance for the input,
Hathaway.

Yes, in away you are correct but it is generally presumed that every one that passed the NLE will apply for Philippine nursing licensure as is almost always the case. Traditionally, all who passes the NLE applies for licensure and is really very rare that someone who passes the NLE and does not apply for Philippine licensure and if one ever held a nursing license they should disclose it via the license validation form. The license validation form is also proof that you passed the NLE, needless to say.

I would like to give an example for the sake of discussion but I hope no one reading this post make some thing out of it.

The above situation is obviously borne out of what happened to the June 2006 batch. Majority of those who passed did apply for Phil. licensure as expected. Who wouldn't apply for Phil. nursing licensure after passing the NLE, right? As stated earlier, it is expected that almost all if not all will apply for licensure after passing the NLE as it what happened to the June 2006 passers. Majority did apply for licensure and are fully licensed nurses in the Philippines, so now they are obliged to re-take test 3 and 5 or if they choose to re-take the whole exam if they want a VSC issued to them with reasons everyone already knows. They of course, will have to obviously pass it and those who will fail the re-take will not be issued the VSC.

To cut the long story short, majority will re-take it anyway if they want a VSC issued to them as majority did apply and have their license and there are only a few or maybe even just a handful that did not apply for licensure even though they passed the NLE. Some did apply for VSC w/ the argument that they do not hold a Phil. license even though they passed the NLE and are part of the June 2006 passers. If you ask me, they may have gotten a VSC due to technicalities as some claimed did but I do not know if that is such a good idea, esp. since working in the US has so many checks and balances. Some US facilities may not hire some one who did not re-take the exams and they do not care about the VSC that they have. The VSC is only for immigration purposes and being hired is another thing and what good it is to have gotten a VSC due to technicalities when no good and reputable facility will hire.

Also, I think some of those who did get a VSC issued to them due to technicalities has chosen to re-take the exam anyway for peace of mind.

CGFNS/ICHP has revoked or canceled visa screen certificates from the past whether it be of their own fault or the applicant's doing as they have stated on their fraud disclaimer on their handbook.

*Note that this is just my opinion as requested by a member here.

suzanne4, RN · Apr 7, 2007

And I agree 100% with what Lawrence has stated.

Remember that the Philippine government issues lists of those that passed and what their scores were. You can easily find a list of those that took the exam and did not pass it. Very common place knowledge in the US and all over the world.

It comes down to semantics, and remember that ICHP has the final word in issuing the VSC, and since they have that, they can also cancel the VSC at any time if they find out information that was not given to them in the first place.

Employers are going to ask more than likely if you took your exam at home, and you need to give them the correct answer. And if you were on the other end, would you wish to hire a nurse that could not pass their own local license, and this does not matter where they are from. If you did not take the exam, then it is a moot point, but if the exam was written, then it is up for discussion. Most will not hire them because of liability issues, and yes, it does matter.