marksi

Thank you for your comments jitomim. It's helpful. I'm familiar with infirmiers.com, and have looked at some of the information you have sent me. I have more than 2 years of hospital work here in the U.S., and they specifically say to work as an infirmier libéral, one has to have worked at a hospital in the EU. Do you know where I would look for job advertisements for HAD? or even in public health clinics? marksi

Hello, I'm an Italian citizen (with an EU passport) but hold an american nursing diploma. I'm also a certified wound ostomy nurse in the US (CWOCN). I've applied to the local DDASS in Paris for recognition of my diploma. I realize that I will have to take an oral exam in french. I've actually applied via the UK since they already have a process in place for foreign educated (outside the EU) nurses. The DDASS tells me they will accept this recognition. I'm mostly interested in working in home care (infirmier liberal). My question is, does anyone know if special requirements or experience are needed to find work as an infirmier liberal, and how easy it might be to find work. Any help or comments are appreciated! Thanks Marksi

You'll have all those questions answered during your training. There are very specific steps to take in order to become certified. The program will help you with that. One of my colleagues did the Emory program and he thought it was excellent. I did the Wicks program, which was distance learning at my own pace, followed by an internship in a local hospital where I live. I would definitely NOT do the distance program if I had to repeat it. I think you'll learn a lot from having peers. And recent med-surg experience is so not an issue. I hadn't worked in med-surg in over 10 years. actually your surgical experience will probably be much more useful, since we work very closely with vascular, GI, and plastic surgeons (for flaps and skin grafts). There's also a program at the Univ of Washington, closer to where you live. Conferences are also a great way to network. Getting to know the local reps of wound and ostomy supply manufacturers, such as Coloplast, Hollister or Convatec, is a good way to get a finger on the pulse of what's going where you live. They know all the WOCNs and who's who. They also liberally give out free samples of products you can often try in your practice. Good luck.

thanks Silverdragon, for the info on what nursing school is like in the UK. It sounds like a 3 year bootcamp! I felt somewhat unprepared after I graduated from my US nursing program. Luckily I was already working as a CNA in two hospitals, and they both hired me on as an RN. So I already knew the nurses and they were excellent mentors. I still felt the "real" training came on the job after nursing school.

that's incredible. I know what you mean. I was overwhelmed by my nursing program as well. Maybe we have more documentation than they do, regarding care plans, etc. Who knows? I know that the community college nursing programs have more clinical hours than BSN programs. I have italian/US citizenship, so am not worried about visa issues. I'm actually trying to get my license recognized in France, but they are such a pain in the ___, regarding getting my american diploma recognized, that's it would actually be easier to get my UK license first, then bring that to the french nursing order. That way I wouldn't have to repeat nursing school in France. So much work for so little pay, but it'll be worth it in the long run, since I think the french health care system is very efficiently run (plus I have family there). And I really like the quality of life in France. thanks again for your advice.

getting certified in wound and ostomy care was the best decision I ever made in nursing. The training is very in depth and I have never received more respect from doctors, surgeons and patients. If you're interested in wounds, I definitely recommend it! I work in both acute care and in home health, and often see patients in the home that I saw in the hospital, and vica versa. Sure it's demanding, what in nursing isn't, but I'm way more independent, and don't have a supervisor constantly watching over me. I report to a team of WOCNs and we meet weekly to discuss policies, case studies, etc. It's a very supportive environment. I don't like a lot of dramarama and adrenaline, either, although at times, especially in acute care, the productivity requirements can be demanding. In home health, I pace my wound and ostomy consults the way I want to, then go to a cafe to document. I also teach an occasional class in wound care, ostomy management, wound vac techniques, and compression dressing techniques. There's always more to learn and as a fairly new WOCN, I've found other WOCNs to be incredibly patient and helpful. We don't "eat our young" as I often felt in other areas of nursing. Regarding if you should get some experience beforehand, it wouldn't hurt. I don't think that will affect your studies at all or your ability to be a good wound care nurse. You have to follow your heart. If you don't want to do other things, why put yourself through all that stress? It may affect other aspects of your career, such as how many years of experience, etc. Employers still often hire based on years of acute care experience. You do get a pretty good background of anatomy and physiology , as well as etiologies of chronic wounds and ostomies. And way more in depth than you ever did in nursing school. Hope that helps. Let me know if you have more questions.

thanks for the advice, babyRN. I'm probably worrying too much. I can't imagine nursing schools in the UK are that different from the US. Are you working in the UK now? If so, how's the job market for nursing?

This is all very helpful information, as I'm applying to the NMC, as well. I just received my paperwork from the University where I received my Bachelor's of Nursing, and the hours they calculated as far short of what the NMC states in their informational sheet. My school only gave me 465 theory hours, and 1005 clinical. The NMC states in their brochure they require far more. Has any one had this discrepancy and finished the process? Did anyone have to work additional hours under observation to make up for these hours? or does the NMC somehow acknowledge the degree equivalency without further requirements besides the overseas nursing program? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. thanks

Wow! It's amazing that this thread has been going on for so many years. I've skimmed most of it, and have a good idea of what to expect regarding nursing in France. I would like to work in France as a nurse. I have dual american italian citizenship, so I believe that the right to work in France isn't an issue. But I have an american nursing license. I've already lived in France (long before I was a nurse), and have family and friends, so I know what to expect regarding the culture. I also speak french, so am not too concerned about the language requirement. It seems that the most difficult issue is getting a nursing license and that there all this testing involved just to enter a french nursing school. I don't want to go repeat nursing school again so I was wondering if anyone has ever gone to another country in the EU, such as Belgium, so obtain an american nursing license equivalency, worked for a while, and then moved to France with an EU license. Seems a little crazy, but from what I've learned, in some other countries it's not as difficult to obtain an equivalency. Thanks for any responses!

i would very much like to speak to italian nurses about nursing in Italy. I'm thinking of doing a master's program in wound care in Italy, and am interested in how nursing is organized in Italy, especially wound care nurses. Anche possiamo parlare italiano ma fuori di questo forum, che non permette. Ciao

I'm a nurse in San Francisco, and I speak Italian. But this website doesn't allow other languages except english. Who really cares why, I'm not sure. I would very much like to speak to you about nursing in Italy. my email is [email protected] You can write to me in italian, no problem. No so perche questo sito non permette le altre lingue. Mandame un email. Piacciarebbe parlare com'è per gli infermiere/i in italia.

Hello Rocco, I just saw your post, even though it's 2 years later. I'm a CWOCN (certified wound, ostomy and continence nurse) in the US, and I was thinking of doing a master's in Italy in wound care. Did you finish your program? I'm very curious about how wound care nurses work in Italy, and in what type of settings you work (hospitals, home, clinics?). Si preferisce, possiamo anche parlare in italiano. thanks. Mark

I've been doing some searches on this as I would like to move to Italy in a few years. There are some universities that offer advanced nursing degrees in Italy. I'm not sure how that translates into jobs, however. i don't believe there's anything like a nurse practitioner. I am a WOCN (Certified Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nurse) and I know that both wound and ET nurses are specialists in some hospitals. As far as licensing, I'm still trying to figure this out using this Italian website: http://www.salute.gov.it/professioniSanitarie/paginaInterna.jsp?id=102&menu=riconoscimento (for determining/applying for degree equivalencies) I believe you have to send documentation to the Ministry of Health to get an approval if the education equals the italian nursing schools. Then you have to apply in the regional office http://www.ipasvi.it/ it seems a little complicated but not nearly as complicated as what foreignors who want to work in the US have go through. I think you also have to take a language exam, as well. Obviously you'll need to speak Italian well. If anybody has any information, as well, please let me know. I'm especially interested in talking to italian nurses who specialize in wound, ostomy and continence care. Thanks