Qualifications for nursing in Ireland (coming from the US)

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Hello!

I am currently in nursing school, looking to graduate next May of 2010, take my NCLEX in June, and embark on my nursing career! I really want to do traveling nursing in Ireland (preferably Dublin), but I have no clue who to ask or what agencies to look for to go about starting the process.

I also don't know any of the qualifications for being a nurse in Ireland, regarding a visa and clinical hours etc. (I know that in order to work in the UK they require a year's experience here in the US first...is it the same for Ireland?)

So if anyone has any ideas to help lead me in the right direction I would really appreciate it!

Thank you!!

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

Starting point would be

An Bord Altranais

Work permit in Ireland

Be prepared for a long wait and probably delays.

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

hi there i trained and worked in Ireland for 2 years post registration. The public health system is in a bit of a melt down at the min, They are not hiring any new nurses at the moment it seems. If you are intrested in working in a public hospital try careersinhealthcare.ie for HSE jos. However i went to secondary school with a girl who trained in the UK and is getting loads of agency work in Dublin at the min in the public hospitals. to be honest i havent a clue how to get a job in a private hospital in Ireland :) try googling the mater private / st vincets private or speaking to a nursing agency.

A word of caution dublin is a very expensive city to live in and the public health service do not give a weighting allowance like the UK. One of the many reasons i dont want to work in Dublin......and the culchie/townie thing is another!!! Since 2006 (when i graduated) all RNs have a BSc in Nursing however a lot of the nurses who graduated prior to that have a dipolma. there is not any differecne in pay etc we are all RGN RMHN or RNID etc.

a years clinical experience would be a great assest to you.

Or come to Oz where there are still jobs. think i will be stuck (lol) here for another year or 2 till things improve at home!!

Good luck!!

K

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Thanks so much for the reply!

I can't even tell you how many odd places (like yahoo questions etc. haha) that I've tried to ask this question to and gotten a reply basically telling me that I won't be able to do it! Glad to get a response from someone a bit more chipper!

I did write the Irish Board of Nursing to see if I would need a years worth experience before I even apply to register as a nurse in Ireland and they told me that it is not required, but that I will need to mention that in my application...so I think I am still going to try to register with them..

But I was actually looking at Australia as well because I keep on hearing about how much they need nurses! Did you go thru a travel agency to work there or just register with the Australian Board of Nursing?!? And how are you liking it over there?!?

Thanks again for the good advice!

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

hi glad to hear that i was a help(!!) In Australia it is a bit different at the moment each you have to register in each state. once you get registered in one stare it is really easy to transfer from state to state though. However there is talk of national registration next year. I spoke to a nursing agency when i was in Ireland and they told me to go online and apply for my registration. You do need a ton of paperwork so it is easier to start it when you are at home and can get acess to it. There are loads of agencies from small ones to nationwide ones. i went with a small agency and got to do a rural placement which was brilliant.

after my working holiday visa was up i applied dierectly to international recruitment of a big public hospital and they have sponsored me!! Yay!!

Am loving it over here the weather lousy in melbourne but it is winter!!

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The question is are you a culchie or a jackeen??? I'm from Dublin myself! I trained in the UK and am now living in the U.S and looking to move to Canada! Sorry I couldn't resist asking!

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

lol!!! am from donegal so think i am a culchie a jhackeen is further south!!!:coollook:

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Specializes in CTICU.

You don't need an agency for Australia - you can contact hospitals directly and then organize your registration thru the ANMC/state nursing board.

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Thanks for all the responses!:)

I literally had no clue where to even begin so your responses helped a lot! I am definitely going to look into both Ireland and Australia now!

Two more quick questions actually...I have been hearing Dublin is very expensive...what about Galway?!? I've never been there, but is it a similar situation as Dublin?

And did you go straight to Australia after you got your license or did you work in Ireland for a bit first??

PS congrats on the sponsorship!

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

Dublin is sooo very expensive rents are crazy. Galway is cheaper I have never lived in either but from listening to friends living in Dublin complain so much about rent in Dublin compared to my Galway based friends I'd say it is chaeper. Try Daft.ie or gumtree for a rough guide of rental prices.

Secondly I did stay in Ireland for 2 years and worked post qualification the ward I worked on was a great grounding and it has stood me in good stead since i've been over here. Espically with being in a different country, different meds, treatment modalities etc it was really good to have a strong bases to fall back on. I know it ia hard in the states at the moment to get a job as a new grad but try because many hospitals may be cautious about taking an overseas trained nurse with no experience on. Best of luck

Karen

thanks for the congrats :)

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So would you say that getting a nursing job over first is a better idea then? (I know you kind of said that in your response, but I just want to double check!) Because a lot of the threads I have read and/or looked up about nursing in Australia even are saying that it's a lot different (in the sense that you mix the IV antibiotics yourself, etc) and that a lot of hospitals don't have a long training program? To sum it up, it seems that they are all saying that it's a better idea to gain experience first before going abroad...

I just have such an "itch" to go abroad it's hard! But I know that I have a lot of time to be able to go abroad....

Basically, I just want to hear your opinion!:)

Thanks!

Libby

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Specializes in Surgical, quality,management.

Well I would say that would be best way but In Australia there is a graduate nurse program where new grads are supported for 1 year by clinical educators and study days ... not really sure of the ins and outs of it because my first proper job (rather than agency) was as a senior RN. I am involved in being preceptors for these new grads but the sept rotation have just started and they had one week in the lecture halls doing no lift and bls and IT stuff. then a week of supernumerary where they were allocated to an experienced RN and given a full patient load.

However if you have your heart set on Ireland your best bet would be to get experience first as An Bord can be quite akward when they want to be.

i didnt find that much of a difference with the basics such as mixing IVABs as we do that in Ireland as well and paper charting is the norm in both countries but a girl from Phoenix started the same week as me and she found it a lot of changes but the basics are still the same.

Good luck with everything.

P.S this is just my opinion and other people might have different experiences and different ideas. whatever you do make sure that you are happy doing it.

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