madricka

Yes, consolidation hours are not paid work. And you can only do 200hrs/semester at George Brown. It’s also kinda pricy — each semester of clinical was around $1500. The theory classes are cheaper (between $325-450 each). There are also books, supplies, scrubs (burgundy), etc. Centennial has a program that is a bit more condensed but they focus on community & psych as opposed to acute care which is why I opted for George Brown (I planned to return to critical care nursing, which I did right after).

The clinical is usually one day a week for 8hrs for 12 weeks — which I know, doesn’t add up to 200hrs/semester. They count all the homework, prep, group work, assignments, etc towards the 200hrs. So it’s entirely doable for you to stay in Peterborough & commute in for the clinical day once a week. Alternatively you might be able to find a preceptor locally who is willing to work with you. Definitely talk to George Brown, they are eager to help students.

It isn’t fair but it is what it is. I was VERY angry about the reinstatement requirements but I really wanted to work again. They will not consider your unregulated work as nursing practice since you were not registered with the CNO. As for the CNO letter — 21 subjects but not individual courses. You’ll have to take about 10 courses to cover all the subjects. As for the clinical, 400hrs is 2 semesters (at least at George Brown since you can only do 200hrs per semester). You also need to complete most of the coursework before you will be permitted to do the clinical hours. So yes, over a year to complete plus the wait time for CNO to receive your transcripts & fees (this takes a few months). You will not have to do English language proficiency test — if you take courses for reinstatement with an Ontario college, that will count as proof of English language proficiency. There is no wiggle room, the CNO is very firm about their rules. The time will pass either way so if you want to work as a nurse again it’s best to just grit your teeth & get through it. It goes by surprisingly fast.

No, it is a set program. It is designed to cover the courses required by the CNO. Pretty much everyone has to do the same thing so it’s not really unique to you. The only difference might be the number of clinical hrs required but that is pretty much 400hrs for 99% of people. I saw one person have to do 600hrs but she had been away from nursing for 17yrs. Otherwise everyone takes the same courses/clinical.

The CNO doesn’t tell you where to go, in fact they are not allowed to because it would be unethical for them to endorse one program over another. So choose the program you like that suits your interests, learning style, financial situation & location. I picked GBC because of location. I hate online learning & most of their courses were offered in-class & online. The campus was beautiful (literally overlooking the lake) & easy for me to get to. I had done my critical care certificate there so I was familiar with them. The focus was on acute care nursing. So it worked well for me. Different programs will work better/worse for you. The courses you would do as part of the refresher are all you need to do. The colleges will get a copy of your CNO letter from you & they have these students all the time. They know what is needed to satisfy the CNO requirements. They are the experts. No worries there. So yes, just the one program at whatever college you select. When you complete all the courses/clinical there is a verification form the college fills out for the CNO & they send that directly to CNO. You also send a copy of your transcript as evidence of completion. Note that the list of topics for theory courses the CNO requires will have some overlap. So if CNO says you need theory courses in pharmacology, geriatrics, computers, health assessment... you don’t need separate courses in each subject. If half of the theory courses you take have a module dedicated to geriatrics, then that requirement is satisfied. The college knows this & will complete the verification form with this in mind.

Not much to tell. You apply for registration with the CNO & pay the fee. They send you a letter with the list of things they require (ie. proof you did nursing program, ID, police clearance, English language proficiency, etc). One of those things will be evidence that you practiced nursing in the last 3yrs. If yes, they will process your application & you will be registered to work. If no or you are unable to provide proof, they will give you instruction on how to fulfill that requirement. Specifically they will say theory courses that cover certain topics (pharmacology, health assessment, computers, geriatrics, etc) plus give a specific number of clinical hours you must complete. I’ve seen the range between 200-600hrs, most ppl have to do 400hrs. Once you provide all the documentation in that letter & pay all the fees, they will register you & you can start working as an RN.

I can’t add links here but the Centennial College program is called, “Bridging to University Nursing - IEN”. If you read the program description it specifically stated it is not just for IEN’s but also for domestic students needing to refresh. My prog at GBC was the same. There is no separate program that is an RN refresher. They put you in with IEN’s because the courses are the same for both. I just looked & it is 2 semesters. Fees are listed at the bottom, roughly $3500 for the 2 semesters. Everything is listed on the program page.

I didn’t mean to overwhelm you! I think the Centennial program is shorter (a year, I think). No idea if it’s cheaper. They might give you credit for courses if taken relatively recently. GBC waived a few courses for me because of my work experience (ie. they didn’t make me take basic emergency management). I think you could likely get a job in LTC here. You have relevant experience & the LTC facilities here are desperate for staff. Actually, everywhere here is desperate for staff. But because you don’t need acute care experience to work in LTC, your chances are much better there. It might mean taking a less desirable job at first & then working towards transitioning to something you would prefer later. Or you could do the program at Centennial (or wherever) & get the education/experience you need to go into your preferred area straight away. Lots to consider.

I did 3-4 courses a semester, depending on availability. I think I did one theory course that was allowed to be taken during clinical. Some are lighter than others. Some are very heavy & a LOT of work. For example, “Nursing in Ontario” wasn’t too bad. Mostly reading with a few assignments/exams. But “Pharmacology” & “Health Assessment” were WAY heavier in terms of content, reading, essays, exams, group work, presentations, etc. So you also need to consider that or you will overload a semester & burn out. But yeah, pretty much like university all over again. Not fun. And yeah, they required theory courses be completed before you can do clinical (with a few courses that can be taken during clinical but very few, like one or two, most had to be done before). It makes sense though, you kinda need to do pharmacology & health assessment & stuff first. I think the Centennial refresher program is more geared towards mental health if that’s your thing. And they do clinical at the same time as theory. When I was researching different schools before I remember not choosing them because of that. I needed something more acute care hospital-based because I was planning to return to critical care. I don’t think you could work in mental health nursing without experience in that area. I could be wrong but most places want you to have some kind of experience. No disrespect to you but no one would count your camp nursing experience. So on paper you haven’t done anything nurse-wise since you graduated 6-7yrs ago. Again, I’m not disrespecting you at all, life happens. I’m just speaking from a practical standpoint. I’m not going to sugarcoat things & waste your time. LTC nursing is caring for geriatric & disabled population. So basic nursing care: meds, baths, personal care, ambulation, assessments, etc. Nothing fancy. Different focus from acute care nursing. One last thing, CNO is SLOW! So you submit fees/docs, they take forever to assess.

BTW, I should point out I am only talking about the program at George Brown. Other colleges might do it differently. But that was my experience 2yrs ago.

I was previously working full time in critical care before I was injured & away from nursing (graduated with BScN in 2007 & started working immediately). I was away from nursing for 3yrs & 2 weeks and CNO made me do refresher. I did refresher at George Brown in 2017-2018 & started working in ICU in Jan 2019. Doing the fresher is pricey. Each course between $350-450. Clinical placements are only 200hrs per semester & cost around $1500-1700 a semester. Plus textbooks, scrubs & other misc costs. You cannot finish all the courses in a year. They are not hard but very time consuming. There are pre-requisites for some courses & not all are offered every semester (plus they fill up fast). Clinical cannot be done until certain courses are completed (ie most of the theory ones) & you can only do 200hrs in each semester. I finished in 4 semesters (2 semesters just theory courses & 2 semesters of clinical). You also have to consider work/family obligations. There is a LOT of work in these courses/clinical (reading, assignments, essays, group work, etc). I cannot comment on the CNO placement, I know nothing about it. As for finding work with just camp nursing, you wouldn’t get hired in a hospital for sure. You may find work in LTC.

I did it. What did you want to know? FYI, you can’t just do a refresher course. You need to apply for registration with the College of Nurses of Ontario. They will then send you a letter outlining what you need to fulfill their requirements to practice nursing in Ontario. One of those requirements will be courses and clinical placement. This is usually about 8-10 courses plus 400+hrs of clinical placement. Once you have that letter of direction you can then apply to a community college to do the required courses/clinical. It takes roughly 4-5 semesters to complete the requirements. Once done it takes several months for the school to forward documentation to the CNO & for them to process everything. The entire thing will take a few years & is pretty expensive. I think it’s worth it. The time will pass either way. I did the courses/clinical through George Brown College in Toronto. It’s the same program IEN take. Good program, nice people. Feel free to ask more questions.

Hi Jass How long it’s will take you depends on how many courses you take at a time. Some are in-class & some online. Some courses might be full so register early for them if you can. There is a lot of work to do so don’t take too many at once & burn yourself out. Note that some courses have pre-requisites you must take first. The program coordinator can help you map out a plan — just call & make an appointment to see her. She is very nice & helpful. Clinical is done last. 200hrs per semester at the end, after you finish the theory courses. They place students in hospitals all over the city, usually in acute care or rehab. You will be able to request a certain area of the city to be as close to home as possible but they cannot guarantee a certain placement. But definitely ask. Clinical hours count as your evidence of practice so don’t worry about yours expiring. The CNO counts all your clinical hours as nursing practice. Best of luck!

No, the program does not count for OSAP because the courses are Continuing Education. George Brown does have some financial assistance for Cont Ed courses, I would contact them for more information.

The CNO does approve courses taken at George Brown. Nursing in Ontario & Scholarly Writing were pre-requisites for all the other courses in the academic pathway program. I'm not sure if you can take others at the same time, the pre-requisites for each course are listed on the George Brown website under each course description. If there is no pre-requisite, you can take it anytime. If you are concerned or need help, I would suggest making an appointment to see ***** ******** (program coordinator) in the office (if you are in Toronto, otherwise just send her an email). She can help you structure your semesters to work best for you. I did 4 courses a semester so I'm sure it's possible! Good luck!