dibleydale

Hi, I've posted on here a few times, i'm a dual qualified nurse and midwife in the UK, i've been in the process of applying to go to canada now for some time. I was going to BC Womens Hospital and was due to start last month, however, we had a crisis at home, member of the family was acutely ill and I had to delay going, now they say they have to withdraw my offer of employment as they don't have any places on their orientation programme for quite a long time, this has really annoyed me because i've spent alot of money on getting my credentials assessed, then applying for my temporary registration, paid for my CRNE and work permit and medical, so all in all it's cost me alot to get this far, I think they are being a little unreasonable too as I remember the girl in HR mentioning that there was a guy due to start with me in the intake, and he was due to start last year, but had to delay because his father had cancer, so can't understand why it's different in this situation. So anyway, my question, is does anyone know anything about what I can do with my work permit, i've been in touch with a few other hospitals over there and there is plenty of jobs and all of them seem happy to accept me, especially as all I need is to get a work visa, the part that takes the longest is out of the way! I'm not sure if I have to apply for a whole new visa or whether the embassy will let me just change it over to a different hospital, it's all so annoying, I could scream!!! :angryfire Would appreciate any advice Thanks Kate

What do you guys think of Port Coquitlam? Is it a nice place to live. I also saw a nice place in pitt meadows called Newport Village that looked quite nice, what do you think? I'm so crap at all of this, I would really like a 2 bed place for all my friends and family to stay, but I think they're gonna have to kip on a sofa bed and i'll get a 1 bed place instead! Kate x:monkeydance:

So can you guys give me some advice on yaletown? Whats it like around there, nice place to live? Also what is the tax rate like over there on your salary, im on $28 per hour, on average how much does that equate to each month after tax? I'm just trying to decide how much I can afford on an apartment each month, i'll need to rent somewhere within the first month of being there and won't now by that time how much i'll be taking home each month after tax. Thanks Kate x

I'm going to be really lucky with my hours. I'll be working 3 days a week, 8am-8pm 2 days followed by a night shift of 8pm-8am, which seems pretty good to me! Do you know by any chance whether the hospitals put your 3 days all together or do they tend to split them over the week? cos that would be a real pain if my days off were always split up so i've never got say 3 days off all at once! Anyway, back to my original point, i'm kind of thinking of living near kitsilano as everyone tells me it's quite nice, but i suppose i'll just go for a wander around when I get to Vancouver and see if I see any places I like. Without meaning to sound awful, I don't want to end up only socialising with english people, I want to make some canadian friends or what would be the point of coming to Canada! (plus canadian men have sexy accents!) If anyone knows of any good apartment buildings on the westside/kits area I would appreciate advice! Thanks Kate x

Thanks for the advice. I considered living in Burnaby as it looked really nice and i'm not usually a big lover in living right in the middle of cities. I looked at the new builds on Burnaby mountain at University Crescent, they are all lovely and really spacious and much cheaper than anywhere else i've looked at, but someone told me it would be a nightmare to get to Oak street every day. I won't be driving i'll be using the transit system, what do you think? would it take ages? Kate

Hi Guys, I'm coming over to vancouver in 12 weeks to work as an RN at BC Women's Hospital, i'm really nervous after having read your CRNE guide book, you guys are very educated (I hope people don't think im dumb!). Anyway, more to the point, where abouts in vancouver would be the best place to live? I travel quite a long distance to work at the moment and i'm sick of getting up for work 3 hours before I start at the moment and would love to live nearby the hospital, I was recommended Kitsilano, Oakridge, Kerrisdale, Shaughnessy and possibly Yaletown if I can afford it!! Does anyone have any ideas? It would be quite nice to live in an area where lots of other nurses live so we could socialise! Plus if there is anyone that fancies a coffee and showing me vancouver in 12 weeks please get back to me! :smilecoffeecup: Look forward to your replies Kate x

Hi, I would really appreciate some advice. I have a job offer from BC Women's to work as an obstetric nurse. I have applied for my nurse registration in BC and had confirmation of my eligibility, so I have now send them my form for criminal record check and form for temporary registration, so all that is pretty much sorted! BC Women's have got my references and have just applied to HRDC for confirmation of my offer and they have given me a start date of 27th Feb 2007. I've booked my flight as I managed to get in dirt cheap by booking it in advance, something stupid like £129 one way. I'm just suddenly having a panic attack now worrying about whether my temporary work permit will have come through by then , last time I had to get a work permit it was really quick (I went to Toronto for a 6 week elective back in 2002), I got it in like 2 months through the London High Commission. I will probably apply for it in about 2 weeks and know I will need a medical, so i'm thinking of booking it up at one of the allocated doctors already, so I don't have to wait. Has anyone else applied for a temporary work permit? if so how long did it take? did you have any problems? Also, i've been looking at areas to live in, I was thinking somewhere in downtown vancouver like Yaletown, any ideas? (or am i dreaming that i'm going to win the lottery) Thanks Kate

Hi, I am starting at BC Women's in february 2007 as an Obstetric Nurse, i'm sooo excited, can't wait to be over there and I absolutely love Canada. If anyone has any advice about BC Women's Hospital, Vancouver in general, Housing etc, or any information on good books I could use as a study guide prior to coming to Canada I would appreciate it. ...or if there are any friendly nurses from Vancouver who work in any of the hospitals, or any UK nurses heading for Vancouver who would like to chat just get back to me. Look forward to hearing from you all Kate x

If anybody is interested in any NCLEX books please let me know as I have loads I don't need as I have decided to go to Canada instead and will be there from February 2007. Just email me back. Thanks Kate

Hiya, I need a little bit of help if any of you dont mind. I am a Registered Nurse form the UK. I was originally offerred a job in the USA, but have just been offerred a job in British Columbia through Health Match BC, which is like a dream come true!. They are visiting the UK next week and I have to go meet with them and specify certain areas of BC where I would be happy to relocate (all of it, it looks beautiful!) So, I have been doing a little bit of research, but would appreciate the input of people who either live there or have visited these areas. The only part of BC I have visited is Golden, when I was on holiday. I have narrowed it down to the following areas: - Vancouver, obviously the big city, lots of people, easy access for family etc. I am an avid skier though, is there much skiing in Vancouver? I am also a little concerned by the amount of rain they apparently have here, is it really that much? dont want to leave one rainy place for another! also is it a safe city? - Kelowna, looks like a lovely place, quite easy access for family, only a short connecting flight, doesnt sound to far to drive to Vancouver either. Is it a place for a 25 year old? is there many skiing areas nearby? - Kamloops, again looks like a lovely place, but is it someone for a young person? is there an airport here? Cranbrook, my favourite so far, beautiful mountain city, lots of fantastic skiing nearby, but again is it a place for a 25 year old single girl? would there be the opportunity to meet people easily? I have heard its is only a 3-4 hour drive to get to Calgary from here, which is excellent. - Invermere, Golden, Nelson, Kimberley, Revelstoke, all look like amazing places, but all a little smaller is size, are they realistic places to relocate? I am a big outdoors fan and love mountain life, I have spent alot of holidays in Banff National Park and have always wanted to live in a mountain community, basically cos I love the lifestyle and sports. I would like to be as close as possible to the Alberta border, so I can hop over to Banff National Park and Calgary is needs be. I would really appreciate any advice from anyone, and hey maybe if I take your advice i'll invite you for a holiday!! Thanks Kate x

I think it depends where you are coming from with regards to gaining a visa and licensure in the UK. The trust I currently work for went over to India to recruit 20 foreign trained nurses last June and by October they were all here working in the trust, with visas and NMC Registration. Hope it doesnt take you too long though, where abouts in the UK are you heading to? Kate x

I cant believe how hard it is to get into the USA, this is proving really difficult. Any other country would snap a foreign trained registered nurse up in a flash! Problem is I dont want to be waiting nearly 2 years to move, feels like i'm putting my life on hold for 2 years. I may have to look at other options open to me like Canada and Australia. Kate x

Hi, I am in the process of exploring all my visa/employment options for living and working in the USA. I am a dual qualified nurse and midwife in the UK educated to bachelors degree level. Could anyone tell me whether I would qualify to become registered as a certified nurse-midwife in the USA and if so how do I go about it? I am heading to Boston if that is any help. Thanks Kate x

Hi, I don't know if anybody can help me, but I am extremely confused. I posted a thread on here last week as I had been offered a position as a travel nurse, which I have now decided not to take up, but I have been offered employment in Boston, which I am taking. I am very confused about which visa I should be applying for, there appears to be very conflicting advice. I now understand the USA don't offer temporary visas to Registered Nurses (which I have to say seems a little mad as seen as Canada/Australia/UK and New Zealand do and I thought they had a shortage of nurses), but anyway I don't know what I should do now. Should I apply for a Green Card? If I do this how long would it take? It seems mad that you should have an offer of employment and be waiting 1-2 years for your visa. Also could the visa process be commenced whilst I am still waiting for exam results, licensure verification etc Thanks for your help Kate

I am currently in the process of immigrating to the US from the UK to travel nurse. I am being sponsored by Innovative Placements, has anybody heard of them or have any opinions on them? Also, as I am obviously new to all this I have a feeling that several people may take advantage of the fact that I don't have much knowledge of travel nursing etc. Could anybody offer me any advice on what I should be looking at with regards to hourly pay and what the standard benefits offered should be. Thanks Kate