US LPN moving to the UK

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Hey everybody,

I've done lots of research online, read through posts on here but they all seem to be a few years old and not current. My answers may still come back the same but I wanted to make sure.

I'm currently an LPN here in the states, have also completed an additional 2 years at a university in preparation to bridge to RN, those were core courses. I am getting married to a Brit and we are moving to the UK by the end of this year! Very excited! I have read that LPN's are know are Enrolled nurses there and the training is obsolete.

Can an American LPN work as an Enrolled nurse in the UK, if not what can I work as? Most of my nursing career has been in hemodialysis, I have 13 years of experience here. I know that fresenius is a provider of dialysis there but have been confused what my qualifications would be there. It's so confusing! Are there bridge programs that I could apply to, or is it impossible for americans to get accepted?

Any help is appreciated!

:clown:

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Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.

lpn will not be recognised by the nmc and to work as a nurse in the uk you need to register with the nmc and meet requirements. enrolled nurses haven't been trained for over 15-20 years, think last places of training was late 80's.

we will not accept your application if you are a second level nurse or the equivalent, for example an enrolled nurse, a licensed practical nurse, a vocational nurse, a state certified nurse, a nursery nurse, a nurse midwife technician, a nurse aid and so on.

http://www.nmc-uk.org/documents/registration/registration%20information%20trained%20outside%20europe.pdf

universities used to have en to rn courses but generally you was seconded from place of work. you mention you are moving to southampton in another post so you may want to contact southampton university who have a nursing section and talk to them however you may be classed as a international student and fees will be high.

http://www.southampton.ac.uk/healthsciences/

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Well, that blows. How can I work in the UK?

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Specializes in NICU.

Don't think you can work as a nurse, unless you get your BSN completed with the number of hours...if you're married to a Brit and live in the UK, working shouldn't be a problem itself, but getting the UK nursing registration will be the critical factor. At this point, you can't :/ sorry. Suggest you hold off on moving to the UK until you get your BSN, although you could do the LDR thing and still get married...I've been through US immigration with my present hubby and it was no picnic, but we made it work while being apart. Best of luck, keep us updated on what you decide or any other options you come across...

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Specializes in Advanced Practice, surgery.
Well, that blows. How can I work in the UK?

The UK stopped training Enrolled Nurses many years ago, and most have now converted to RN registration.

As babylady says, if your married to a Brit and get through the immigration process you should be able to get work but just not as a nurse.

Good Luck

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