You are reading page 2 of RN from US to Québec to Ontario by RN_3000
I am forced to apply to the College of Nursing of Ontario (CNO) because the way the Ordre des Infirmiers et Infirmières du Québec (OIIQ) is set up, I will not be able to sit for the nursing exam in Québec. Let me explain:
I am a United States (US) trained BSN-RN with 5 years of experience in a major hospital in the US. I am a Canadian citizen but have lived in the US for many years.*
I decided to bring my family to Canada, in the province of Québec where I grew up. It was a hard decision, but my wife supported my ambitions and together we made the move to Québec happen. My wife and kids do not speak English, but my childhood memories in Montréal were full of kids who spoke little English. Furthermore, Montréal is a vibrant city and we wanted a change from our life in the US. My family also has a nursing related business that I wanted to help sustain. For those reasons and others I will not share in this post, we left the life we knew in the US to move to Québec. I am sharing this to emphasize the weight of the move and how I feel that the Québec system does not take into account the livelihood of foreign educated health care professionals applying to work in Québec.
I applied to the OIIQ and they decided that I had to do 30 days of clinical and upon passing this latter, I would be eligible to sit for the next nursing board exam (given twice a year: March/Sept). I was unble to secure a 30 days clinical rotation in Montréal and its neighbouring regions. Therefore I was also unable to sit for the nursing exam. On the same token, I am unable to work, even as a "Candidat de l'Exercice à la Profession Infirmières" (CEPI), which is similar to a paid student nurse in US term.*
My family and I moved here from the US and I cannot provide for us because the plan did not go accordingly. I did not factor the fact that although I am qualified, experienced, bilingual, and ready to work I would come upon this obstructive wall. I, of course, called the OIIQ to informed them of this unacceptable situation and was told to look into doing my clinical at a college, however it would take me more than 30 days to accomplish and that I would have to check with the school. After doing some research online, it looked like it would take at least a full semester. The idea of having to do clinical hours was a tough pill to swallow, but I comforted myself in the fact that the OIIQ gave me the least amount of hours possible because my education and work experience must have been very similar to Canada's. But the new twist of having to actually go to school for at least a semester before even being able to work as a CEPI, and that after having already missed a Québec nursing test, only given 2 times per year, due to not being able to complete 30 days of clinical because I did not receive a call giving me the opportunity was the straw that broke the camel's back as they say.
I decided to look into other options and realized that Ontario was a very good option for me. I would not have to take a nursing test since I have already passed the NCLEX in the US. The NNAS website and application process makes it so much easier to stay updated on the progress of the application. So I went ahead applied. Regarding working as a nurse in Canada, this was the best decisions I have made in my opinion.
I wanted to write and post my experience on allnurses.com because I have used it so much during these tough times. I am not bashing the OIIQ nor hospitals because I was not able to secure a clinical rotation. Rather, I am writing to shed some light on a problem that I have personally experienced.*
Qualified foreign educated nurses look at Québec (specially Montréal) as a great place to work, live, and raise a family;*please do not push them away.
Thank you for reading.
