What to do after SEC assessment?

[AVKON]

Hello to everyone.

I am a Registered Nurse in the Philippines with one year experience in the Operating Room and 3 months experience in the General Medical/Surgical ward (prior to being assigned in the OR). I have filed my application with CRNBC and I have done my IELTS already.

Last week, I received a letter from CRNBC stating that for CRNBC to continue assessing my application, I must take a SEC assessment test (nursinginbc.ca).

My original plan was to apply for a Work Permit/BC PNP after I get my job offer after CRNBC states that I am eligible to write the CRNE. However, since CRNBC will not be able to assess me until I take the SEC, my plan is now all messed up.

I know what the SEC is about, what worries me is how to go about this. Obviously, I will have to go to Canada sometime this year (my deadline is Dec. 10, 2009) and take my SEC, probably on a Tourist Visa. What to do AFTER the SEC assessment is what bothers me. Kwantlen U. said it will take them 3-8 weeks to release my results, and CRNBC sait it will take them 1-2 months to assess the results. If I fail, I would have to take some coursework and retake the SEC, if I pass I would then be eligible to write the CRNE. The timeframe between CRNBC assessing my results and, assuming I pass, declare that I am qualified to write the CRNE is vague.

So why is this troublesome? Obviously, I will have to STAY in BC while I wait out how all these events work out. Going back home to the Philippines would not be financially sound; I cannot imagine going back and forth to Canada without putting my family into serious debt. So I am stuck in Canada WITHOUT work for AT LEAST 3 months.

To IENs who have to take the SEC, what are your plans? What do you plan to do as you wait out the results of this process?

To CRNBC and other regulating bodies, I know why you have to do this, but would it not be better if SEC were offered OUTSIDE Canada as well? Or maybe somewhere else along the application process, maybe after getting 350+ hours of supervised work? Do you know you are asking IENs to travel to Canada to take the SEC without secure employment or even permission to work? Please know that the fare alone to Canada is no small change for those of us in developing countries, at least assuring us that this can be a ONE TIME expense with work at the end of the line for us to pay off unavoidable debts would be a step in the right direction.

To immigration and visa experts, what do I have to do to be able to find and do work in Canada for these months? Can I apply for a Work Permit when I have an employer? Obviously I cannot work in the hospital, but any work for proper pay is fine, so long as the work (and my stay) is legal and the pay is proper. If I need to do coursework, will I have to appy for a Student Visa as well?

Thank you very much for your time.

[5cats]

You'll need a canadian textbook and the code of ethics to know your scope of practice, and probably info on that specifically for BC.

I would contact the University if they have any book suggestions.

good luck

5cats

[imokfurok]

thanks janfrn and 5cats i really appreciate your replies.

i got a lot of work to do i guess.(coz aside from the busy work i am having now, i need to have time to work on the process of my application).

to be honest i am trying to weigh things as of the moment.(to proceed or not)

my next step is to go to canada for sec assessment then go back to singapore to wait for sometime and if i am blessed to have a good result i need to wait for the scheduling of the exam(by the way how hard is the exam? any idea?) and i need to go to canada again to take the exam after that go back to singapore again to wait for the result. its really a long and expensive process specially that i dont have any relatives and i dont know anybody in canada.(concerns like where to go, where to stay)

i am trying to assess my self if i could make it or not(to the assessment and exam) (because it would be really a lot waste of time, effort and money if i wont make it)

i find it hard applying in canada comparing to applications in australia or new zealand(though they require higher score in ielts).

can you pls. answer a few q,s:

1. how come there are employment agencies in philippines who process the applicants papers to work as a nurse in canada(and a lot of nurses are going but of course with a high agency fee).

what are the status of those applicants ther? how come they were able to work easily?

(i am thinking of going throughan agency, maybe it would be easier)

2. can i not apply in any hospital there to at least help me with my application process(at least i have work while waiting for the process / i dont mind working on any field)

3. is there any hospital or company that you you that would do such thing? (help applicants)

pls give me your advises (i really need it for me to decide)

thank you very much.

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

(by the way how hard is the exam? any idea?)

the exam is quite difficult for non-canadian-educated candidates for several reasons. first is the complexity of language used, since the exam was designed to test canadian-educated nurses and therefore uses university-level english. second is the focus on community health and all its ins and outs. this is not usually a priority in the education of nurses in other countries. third is the emphasis on therapeutic communication and psychosocial aspects of care, also not a huge focus outside of canada. the exam has less emphasis on pathophysiology and clinical performance and more on the intellectual. sec on the other hand looks at pathophysiology, clinical expertise, clinical judgment and integrating all the components of nursing into your care.

1. how come there are employment agencies in philippines who process the applicants papers to work as a nurse in canada(and a lot of nurses are going but of course with a high agency fee).

what are the status of those applicants ther? how come they were able to work easily?

(i am thinking of going throughan agency, maybe it would be easier)

the philippines has turned the education of nurses into an industry for export. in order to "sell" their "product" they need a broker and these agencies provide that. however, the emphasis on quantity over quality has created some serious issues for the filipino nurses who believed they were being educated to the north american standard and then found that wasn't true. they also were/are fooled into believing that an agency will smooth out all the bumps in the road for them, but the agencies are really only looking after one thing and that's their profits. there may be some element of collusion between health authority recruiters and the agencies; the alberta experience has been largely a failure. many of the nurses who were placed in canadian jobs through an agency have found it very hard and they haven't all been successful. a few had been returned home because of an inability to manage the scope of practice and the work of canadian nurses.

2. can i not apply in any hospital there to at least help me with my application process(at least i have work while waiting for the process / i dont mind working on any field)

3. is there any hospital or company that you you that would do such thing? (help applicants)

there are some health authorities in bc, saskatchewan and manitoba that have some experience in that sort of thing. have a look at the colleges of nursing websites and use the links provided there to check out employment through the regional health authorities. https://allnurses.com/canadian-nurses/links-provincial-colleges-303171.html

as you say, the process is long, it's convoluted and it's very costly. i advise people to be very sure that they have the resources and the perseverance to follow through with it before they start. you might want to give some thought to checking out the singaporan community in vancouver to see if there are groups already in the act of helping out potential immigrants. there may be some practical assistance you could obtain, such as a billet for the time you're in canada to take sec, and to write the crne and emotional and cultural support. (you can write the crne in any province, once you have eligibility confirmed by the province where you wish to work, you just have to request it.)

[imokfurok]

Thank you so much janfrn, your such a great help.

I also hope you can help me with the sources to prepare my self.

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

Check out the threads on the CRNE for a list of study guides and opinions on which is best for preparing the IEN for the CRNE. There's been a lot of discussion recently on which is best.

[imokfurok]

thanks janfrn,

[dasha1111]

Hi, i am just curious...Are you familiar with the Diagnostic exam in SEC asssessment? I mean, is it similare to CRNE exam which is questions based on nursing in general? Or is it an exam purely on "diagnostic tools" like lab equipments, O.R equipments? I have a different perceptive of the "diagnostic" term. And it doesnt help that there are no study practice guides for SEC assessment (unlike CRNE ) since this is fairly new. Any tips would help. Thank you!

[NotReady4PrimeTime, RN]

Did you read this? FAQ - Substantially Equivalent Competence (SEC) Assessments

You can't study for the SEC. They are assessing you on how you perform as a nurse... how you practice. They want to know that your practice will be roughly the same as that of a nurse who was educated in Canada. Psychomotor competence can't really be assessed by a written examination. There have been many nurses who were clinically quite competent but who couldn't pass a written exam to save their lives, and other nurses who could pass the exam with a perfect score but couldn't apply what they knew intellectually to a real-life patient under any circumstances. The SEC tries to capture both knowledge AND skill.

[dasha1111]

I can't study for the SEC? Uhmmm...Im not sure if you got that right. I got an email from the SEC rep suggesting of books i can look into to prepare for it, including even the CRNE guide. If you meant that there's no reviewer for "that" unlike the CRNE, true....and i do got that part already.

Thank you for the link but yep, i've read almost all the info that can pertain to SEC but nothing that answers my questions. I understand this is fairly new so i know only those who sat on it, has an idea. Having said that, i'm throwing in my question (my queries) for those who sat on their schedules dates already.

AS for those who took the SEC assessment , i have an idea that there is a question exam that runs for 7 hours which is what they term as "diagnostic" exam but i just want to know if it covers the general nursing or diagnostic tools...Confused still... AS for the Triple Jump & Clinical Judge self assessment, i already have an idea on both. Its just the latter...

Thanks in advance to those who can answer my queries:)

[kelliehguhie]

hi all, I am new to this website and new to this sec thing. I landed here about 4 weeks ago with my thre kids, from brisbane, austalia (husband to follow), and have been battling my way through the registration process. I hve been told that I need to do an SEC in pediatrics and maternal health. I ahve been nusring for 20 years and sepcialise in cardiac (adult cardiac), so the thought of having to do this is quite daunting. I have been to kwantlan and borrowd books and am booked in for the 5th adn 6th of october for my SEC, and was just wondering if there s anyone out there who has any tips for me. I find this process very frustrating, especailly considering there is ashortage on cardiac nurses in vancouver, but to be honest I do get it. so any help would be greatly appreciated and I of course would reciprocate for anyone followong me, it is not cheating is it, it is simply sharing information and narrwoing my field of study down a little, cheers all much appreciated

[imokfurok]

Hi everyone. im required to take a SEC assessment (med/surg) @ kwantlan.

can anyone please share any resources (books, websites) to prepare my self for the assessment.

your help and advice would be a great help. dasha 1111 = can share what books to check on?

5cats= any book suggestions? janfrn = pls advise. (i know it would all be based on my stock knowledge as a nurse but i think it would really help me to update more or refresh perhaps if i can check out some books or websites)

thank you so much.

[5cats]

For websites and info look at the FAQ on top of the threads, for books: You should know code of ethics (availabale from CNA or BC College of Nursing), scope of practice in BC and a med surg textbook preferable a canadian one, look at amazon (I forgot the title of mine)

5cats