clay07

I am just seeing this...sorry. yes they can and no certification required, u are actually overqualified.

Hi ArtisticAthelete: I will try to phrase what I have to say with the hope that it will not come across as offensive. So here goes! I have just scanned through most of your posts and it seems to me that your interest in this profession (health) is for the wrong reasons. Most of your posts seem very self serving which is contradictory to the health profession itself. If you are in it for the money, or the idea that nursing school is a breeze or unable to make sacrfices for the good or the "call to service", then I am thinking the health field in general is not for you. Again, I am only speaking from what has been implied from your previous posts-all of them! Nursing is more than a job really...I use to say its a noun, an adjective and a verb. You can't come with an attitude of selfishness/selfcenteredness and to h...with the rest of it! There is a lot of give and take in this profession; mostly give. I do hope that you really consider all of the responses you have received in all your posts including this one and that you will truly give it much thought before venturing into this field. selah.

This sums it up! And yes, that is in the first hour or so while expecting an admit!

Thanks Janfrn. I have googled and googled all possible search and couldn't come up with anything that would answer my question. This helped a lot!

Hi Sandraann: Check out crne feb 2009 as well as read previous posts on this blog regarding some of your questions. Janfrn, Silverdragon, anyone???!! How long after being here can I apply for PR? Can I begin the process right away or is there a specific guideline to follow?

Recap: Ok, so I did the exam Feb 4, had job interview Feb 13th, went back home to Jamaica, did interview for work permit (can't remember date, some time in April), got approved, arrived on the 24th of June, got work permit. 25th faxed a copy to CNO, applied for SIN that same day, got it on Saturday, July 4th. Called CNO on Friday, July 3, told me they sent my letter of consent (letter which requires your consent to abide by the rules as stipulated on the work permit)-see previous post on work permit restrictions. It was mailed, so I asked the agent if she could send a copy via email or fax, she did. Signed that, was accepted for review for the end of the month, but official letter will be received in mail and still needs to be signed and sent for their records. After they have reviewed the work permit, if approved, I should hopefully be getting my license by early August. So, let's see, that took, since exam Feb. 4, six months! Ok....I hope this info will help someone have an idea about the process in settling down in Canada. I hope others will continue to share just that. The process in settling down in Canada and the experiences that will help us/or anyone to better adjust or transition here. Doesn't have to be nurse related. Welcome experiences from all provincies: things we need, must haves etc., what never to leave at home, the most important thing we must know when moving here....

I arrived in Canada on June 24, 2009 at ~7:45p. The immigration officer was really pleasant. She asked what was the purpose of my visit and took the paperwork and processed it. The work permit does have restrictions (as expected). 1. Unless authorized, you can't attend any educational institution and take any academic, professional or vocational training. (She gave an example that if I wanted to take french class for a couple of months that's fine, just not something that will issue a diploma/degree). 2.Not authorized to work in any other position other than stated. 3.Not authorized to work for any employer other than stated. 4.Not authorized to work in any location other than stated. 5. Must leave Canada by, stated. Day 2: June 25 Faxed a copy of my work permit to CNO (included a copy of the job offer). Applied for the SIN at Service Canada, not Service Ontario. I got the number not the card. The card will be sent to me in the mail within 1 -2 weeks. The rest I'll get done when I get to London. So far, so good.

hi: check this out. schools which are accredited by the ceph (council on education of public health). note the time of initial accreditation, and the conclusion of the current accreditation term (in parentheses). http://www.ceph.org/files/public/master_list.v.9.pdf

Hi: Check this out. Schools which are accredited by the CEPH (Council on Education of Public Health). Note the time of initial accreditation, and the conclusion of the current accreditation term (in parentheses). http://www.ceph.org/files/public/Master_List.v.9.pdf

I would agree that Kaplan is a good school, thing is they are expensive (I believe). I called them yesterday to check out the same. This is what I was told: $350/crdt-63 credits for the MSN; Total $22K+. Walden on the other hand is $435/crdt, approx. 41 credits for the MSN program; Total=$17835 (includes books and fees (waldenu.edu). They have a special that if you apply and they receive all they need by June 22, you'll get a 20% discount. Also Phoenix University, theirs is $550/crdt, 42 credits to complete the program I asked about.

So I called CNO just now. Same fees as you mentioned Janfrn for both initial registration and renewal. Get this, while mine isn't half as bad as your scenario, the deadline for renewal is Dec. 31, 2009. So, if I get registered by the end of July or beginning of August, it'll only be four months before renewing my license! Oh well, live and learn. Mzee: I asked the agent if the test is the same in all the provinces and she said yes, except in Quebec. As was mentioned by Janfrn, Canada uses SI units...metric system...I don't know of any books to recommend. What I did was google the most popular/common labs as well as ask my mom because Jamaica uses the same system like Canada.

Janfrn: I guess that's why they say some people are trail blazers.... at a cost!!!! Appreciate you and others on the forum for having shared your experiences as well as advice. Thanks again.

you're welcome.

Thanks Janfrn.

:angryfire:angryfireSo, remind me why I chose Ontario again? Not a huge difference, but a difference indeed. You know its all about not knowing what you should know, you know? As soon as I land in Canada, I will be mailing off all the rest of the necessary paper work to CNO: work permit.

I was told the same thing, 12 weeks. Just know different factors determine the process. I am not sure why mine took a month and half, it is strange that you haven't yet been assessed. Outside of what I have shared I haven't done anything differently. I wish I had an answer for you. I believe I spoke with a customer service rep.. Did you ask them if they had all the requirments you sent in to start the process? I really don't know...since March? Well theystill have about 3 weeks left. Call back tomorrow. Maybe someone else will be able to clarify what we hope to be a misinformation about it taking another 12 weeks.

Gulp at registration fee...on that first thing in the morrow.

Yes, I used the Prep Guide as the main study tool. I used the book as opposed to the cd since it is a written exam. Unlike NCLEX where I used the cd. Medicine is standard whereever you go, so yes the lab and hemodynamic values are based off an international standard (someone please correct me if I'm wrong). The difference is in the medications and the measurements used. USA has not converted to the metric system yet, so they still use feet, inches and pound, unlike Canada which uses meter, centimeter and kilogram (this is good to know when study or preparing for the exam). I am sure there maybe some cultural difference, but... No I don't have notes, I just made a few jottings in the book. Any of your nursing books should have questions surrounding psychsocial events, again, I must remind you that you should however study as though you would for NCLEX: prioritizing, safety, delegation, labs...and like silverdragon said there are forums which focus on how people have prepared for the CRNE. We'll figure it out.

Hi mzee: I am going to be as detailed as possible because I remember how clueless I felt, not knowing the right questions to ask.... Process: There isn't anything you can do to get your application processed by the provincial board of choice ASAP. The only part you have control over is getting everything to CNO or whichever provincial board you chose. I visited my sister in September last year. I had shown interest in applying to CNO earlier that year and had requested and already received a application package, I took it with me to Canada just in case I decided to start the process. So, when I got there and made the decision I put a plan in action. It helps that you are prepared to spend some money to get the process out of your hand. 1. Filled out package. 2. Sent all I needed to send to my school in USA, board, and to my previous employer. (This is why it is so important to establish healthy relationships whereever you go and to not burn bridges) as well as same day mailing to CNO. I called all involved and asked them to treat the matter with urgency. With the board in the US, I called and asked how long it would take and how much it would require to verify my license. I believe it was $40 USD. There's nothing you can do where the board is concerned. You send a money order with the paper work required by CNO to your board of nursing (all these forms are in the application package) and just hope that they treat the matter with urgency. 3. I used FEDEX(free ad here:D) for everything 4.In package to CNO, I sent everything they expected, including my copies of my CGFNS, diploma, license, and certificate of license in the USA not your OPT work permit. Your license does have an expiration date, attach a letter explaining why it is not renewed, if at the time of the application it is not current. They will verify everything you send them from your licensure board, it just helps your case to clarify possible questions. 5.I waited. Made calls to the hospital and school to ask them to send everything back through FEDEX. I asked a friend to pick up the sealed form from my employer and send it through FEDEX. The school's administrator was pretty good in assisting me to get the package off ASAP. 6.Follow the instructions in the application package to the 'T' you can't lose. When in doubt CALL them (the provincial board of choice). I keep referring to CNO (College of Nurses of Ontario) because its my board of choice. So, it was out my hands, now up to my school, my board of nursing in USA, previous place of employment, CNO and the mailing system. I waited. I started the process in September and heard from them (really, I was the one who called) in November (a month and a half of processing-not bad). Just in time to hear that I was assessed and found eligible to sit the CRNE (Canadian Registered Nurses Exam). They said I was sent a package in the mail but that the deadline to sit in February was two days later. Thank God for technology! I asked if there were alternatives, yes! They attached and sent the application to sit the CRNE to me via email and I was able to print off and send it back to them using you guess it, FEDEX. Got confirmation that I was able to sit the exam in February. Exam: I purchased the book recommended by CNO-CRNE Prep Guide, I might have looked in an NCLEX book once or twice but not really. I looked at the type of questions and focused my attention on how to answer them. The questions on the CRNE are MOSTLY psychosocial as opposed to NCLEX where alot of clinical judgement, meds and their effects and... So when studying think about what you learned in Mental Health.Therapeutic nursing...Not so much what you'd do first (although, please note these are important as well, you should still study as if you would for NCLEX) but just focus alot on psychosocial events. I recommend getting the book suggested by your provincial board of choice. This will help in focus studying. I also bought the practice exam a couple of weeks before the exam. Go to the website of the provincial board and read through thoroughly, again if you have questions, call them. After the exam: Come online and go through the waiting process with those on allnurses, great place to get support and vent anxieties! I recommend that while in Canada for the exam, visit career fairs. If possible try and get an interview with a possible employer, they understand the process...remember to always have copies of everything with you including resume. I hope I helped.

Its not all black and white. We obviously can only speak to the cards given to us, so it is with my trying to explain from my experiences and not sharing the whole story. The article is sensitive, as it should be, to the poor conditions of the hospital mentioned. I am speaking to the history of what I have heard and experienced there. True I could stop pointing fingers, be a part of the solution and stop complaining about the problem...but its a who knows who world. Listen, there are a lot of things to overcome before one can try and make a difference. Like I said, a lot of politics is also involved. Its not that simple, not that black or white. Don't think for one second that Jamaica is so poverty striken that we aren't techno-savy (of course there's always room to welcome more). Its sad that this is not the case for the babies on this floor. I do agree that there's alot of room for improvement. I shared this article to shed light on a small part of the nursing community. I do hope to be a positive impact one day on the nursing community in Jamaica. As for having a different perspective if I were trained there, not so. My mother, other nurses from her batch, and many other nurses have proven that nursing is nursing regardless of where you're trained. The standard of nursing practice is just that, standard. Its like I said, this does not speak to ALL the nurses at home, its just the few bad apples spoiling the bunch, and most of the horror stories occuring there. The article spoke about the misfortune of one nurse and the circumstances that surrounded her decisions. I wanted to give voice to the situation. Until I am better able to make a positive change, its all I can do. Its one situation, but like all situations, there are many factors surronding it. Standing from the outside looking in and given just so much to work with, its understandable that as nurses we will see only from the perspectives of our fellow nurses. Again, this is not an attack on the nurse in the article, it is to shed light on the pattern of behavior of the nurses at this hospital observed over the years. I thank you for your encouragement to give back. Looking forward to someday do so.

The quote about nursing the baby had to do with what to do if there were no technology assisted apparatus; use basic nursing skills: what to do when there is no pitocin? let the mother nurse the baby. I agree with the forum about most things. My point however still holds on what I have experienced with the nurses at THIS hospital. Yes it is true that many other factors need to be taken into consideration and God knows we (nurses) have been expected to turn water into wine in emergencies without the water, but I still hold to the fact that a lot of the nurses working at THIS hospital are doing so without the governance of a regulatory body. I won't begin to talk about the doctors. That's another article! I get it that we have been head cooks and bottle washers in extreme circumstances...THIS scenario is only a reflection of the MANY malpractices occuring at THIS hospital. It is sad that this nurse has become the catalyst for further investigations. I do hope that something acctually comes out of this. That she is able to redeem herself, but that too the root of the problem resolved.

The question is, where do we begin? Jamaica is a third world country, there is a lot of political influence in every institution, I would move to agree with you about them pocketing the monies... Let me also say, I am not trying to kick this nurse while she's down, I am just trying to understand why it is that so many malpractices have been made at THIS hospital, I know about it, yet the board seems to be completely unaware of it. Maybe this nurse was doing her best, its hard to say. But having followed the history of the hospital over the past 10 years (hearing the horror stories of others) and looked at patterns of behavior of the general nursing population at THIS hospital (although this does not include ALL), its hard to be objective, for that I am sorry.

Hi Oramar: I am the first to understand and support any nurse who has had a momentary lapse in judgement. We are nurses, but we are first human, I know. The thing is THIS hospital has a history. Several cases of misdiagnoses, pronounciation of death of people who were indeed ALIVE, babies disappearing and parents told that they had died....the list goes on. Lapse in judgement is one thing, we, I have had that, but I owned up to my error and documented it (although the error was not to moratality I did not try to cover my tracks-common practice at THIS hospital). Quite a number of these nurses feel as though they are untouchable, they wear nigtgowns at night and watch t.v. at the nurses station(this was reported by one of the patients at the hospital during my visit with Kiki). When patients call for help, they turn a blind eye and ear. One mother told me that when she was giving birth, another woman in labor (the baby was crowning) screamed for help, when the nurse told her to stop the screaming or she would give her something to scream about. I understand if this were another case of lapse in judgement, trying to do good and your good turned out to be something to be used against you, that there would be cause for concern on the nurse's part. The thing is, these (alot of them) nurses, are not interested in asking the opinion of others, they practice as laymen who would do what they think is best to do because they don't know better. I don't know if I have brought clarity to the scenario...we should stand up for our fellow nurses, but this is out of hand. They are way out of hand! Its not just this one nurse, its about the practice and pattern of several others like her at THIS hospital. There are several cases... Thanks to all for your input.

Nurses: I can empathise from the perspective of the lack of equipment, but not every hospital in the world has modernised equipment and environment. Believe me when I say, it is possible to hang a drip without a pump, it is possible to share one bed with 2 mothers in labor, its is possible to have 20 patients to a room...This nurse could have used other alternatives...simple. I say this from the background of having several first hand experience at this hospital, believe me when I tell you, more could have been done in the lack, more should have been done in the lack. Please see my post "Nightmare at a major hospital in Jamaica", several other patients were also affected. I am so glad someone finally spoke out. I wait to bring my case to the board. I know we are not in the dark ages, I know this is not Florence Nightingale's era, but have we got so dependent on machines that should they shut down, we become clueless? No excuses. A mother has gone home without her child.

Hi Nerdtonurse: This would be true if it were another hospital. However, malpractice at this hospital is VERY common. It would seem that a lot of these nurses do things without critical thinking and do so also under the impression that there is no regulatory body. This time they were caught! My dad was pronounced dead at the hospital mentioned, had it not been for my mom (FNP), he would now be in the grave. True , they might not have been properly equipped, but this is a premi for God's sake! Alot of times (as mentioned in my personal experience) these nurses abandon their posts and cover up their error by stating it was something else that caused it. This hospital, May Pen Hospital, has been allowing alot of these nurses to escape wth alot of things, partly because there aren't enough voices to echo the maltreatment being given to the patients. This is a domino effect from the crime and violence also predominant in Jamaica today (everyone is tight lipped). Its a long story. I am Jamaican, trained in the USA, licensed in the USA. I cringe at alot of what I have seen in a few of the hospitals that I see at home. It breaks my heart to know that "NURSING STANDARD" is so watered down there. There are no excuses, she could have used other methods to bring warmth...there are no excuses! This is NEGLIGENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *I remember one thing one of my instructor told us in school, that should we ever fall in a situaion where there are no machines, only our brains, we should be able to deliver the same standard and quality of nursiing. What do you do if there is no Pitocin and the mother has not expelled the placenta? Cognitive thinking...its basic nursing skills! Let her nurse her baby! I am so mad. A mother has gone home without her child.