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General Information
for International Nurses
PROGRAM OVERVIEW
BENEFITS OF WORKING WITH EUROPEAN MEDICAL STAFFING
NURSING NEWS
Current employment situation for international nurses in the United
States
The recent
economic downturn in the United States has fundamentally changed the
employment situation for nurses in the United States. According to
a recent study by
Peter Buerhaus of the Vanderbilt University School of Nursing and
colleagues the decade-long nurse shortage in the United States is
easing, or even ending, partly as a result of the continuing recession.
The study found that older nurses are delaying retirement or returning
to the workforce and part-time nurses are becoming full time in response
to the employment insecurity of their spouses. In 2007 and 2008,
the number of full-time-equivalent (FTE) registered nurses grew by
nearly a quarter of a million, an increase of 18% over the two-year
period.
Besides, our
own survey of US hospitals indicates that the increase in unemployment
in the United States has lead to a decrease in patients in some
hospitals which reduces the need to recruit additional nursing staff.
Some hospitals have actually started to reduce the number of nurses
working in their facilities.
On the other
hand, the demand for nurses in certain areas of specialty such as
critical care and with certain language skills such as Spanish remains
strong.
Visa Situation
Despite the
long wait times for employment based immigrant visas for candidates with
Bachelor's degrees (EB3) - commonly referred to as 'visa
retrogression' - various other visas for international nurses are
available.
Qualified
Registered Nurses from Canada and Mexico can obtain a TN visa with
relative ease. Nurses from Australia may qualify for E-3 visas.
International nurses who have obtained
Bachelor's degrees in Nursing and fulfill certain other requirements
might qualify for H-1B work visas.
International nurses with Master's or Doctorate
degrees
who fulfill certain other requirements are eligible for
immigrant visas under certain circumstances. These visas are
current and available in employment based immigrant visa category EB2
(excluding China and India).
H-1B
Work Visa Requirements
The H-1B visa program is designed for
U.S. employers who wish to employ foreign workers in
specialty occupations - including nursing - that require
a bachelor’s degree.
In a hospital environment this means that international
candidates have to be hired into a position which
requires a BSN degree.
International nurses without a
Bachelor’s degree could still qualify for an H-1B visa
if they have a high level of work experience in nursing
in addition to their foreign nursing degree.
US hospitals interested to recruit
international nurses on an H-1B work visa into a certain
hospital department have to be able to show that the
nurses currently employed in this department meet the
same standards of either having a BSN degree or a high
level of work experience.
According to USCIS, international
nurses on H-1B visas can be recruited into the following
specialty areas: Peri-operative, school health,
occupational health, rehabilitation nursing, emergency
room nursing, critical care including ICU/NICU,
operating room, oncology and pediatrics.
Why work in the United States ?
Working in the United States can be a big boost to your
nursing career. Unlike in most other
countries around the world, nurses in the United States
have a much higher level of decision making authority
over patient care. Nurses in the United States are
not simply assistants of physicians but play a much more
vital role in the healthcare system.
If you are looking for a career opportunity that let's
you put your talent and abilities to full use while
advancing your knowledge and skills as a nurse a career
in the United States may be a very rewarding step for
you.
Why work with European Medical Staffing ?
European Medical Staffing has developed a system of
international nurse recruitment that has proven very
successful in Europe. We are now offering our
expertise to nursing professionals in select other
countries. We
will give you honest and truthful information about the
entire process to work in the US so you can make an
informed decision if a career in the United States is
the right step for you.
So you can start a successful long-term career in the US
it is very important that you work for a reputable
hospital which has a program in place to properly train
and integrate Mexican nurses into the US hospital system
as well as opportunities for continuous education.
Otherwise, you will never enjoy the full potential a
nursing career in the United States has to offer.
European Medical Staffing will only place you in
reputable US hospitals who recognize that integrating
international nurses into their hospital system is as
important for them as it is for you. You will be
employed by the hospital and enjoy all benefits such as
health insurance the hospital offers to all its
employees.
You will reimburse you for US$1,750 for your initial
expenses to obtain a Texas nursing license after we
place you at a hospital in the US.
You will not sign a contract until you agree to work in
a specific US hospital and until you had the opportunity
to review the employment contract with one of our
attorneys.
Requirements for International Nurses
Working as a nurse in another country can be a great
way to gain experience and to grow as a person as
well
as professionally. If you are considering to
explore opportunities abroad, please read on.
Following is a list of requirements for international nurses
interested to work with us.
Here
is a list of countries we work with:
Australia,
Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland,
France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands,
New Zealand, Norway, the Philippines,
Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey
and the
United Kingdom.
In
order to work with us you have to be a citizen of one of
these countries.
If you are a citizen of any other country and you are interested
to work as a nurse in the United States we might be able work with you if
you meet all the other requirements.
You
also have to meet the following requirements:
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Speak fluent English. If you are from a countries
where English is not the first language you should have
lived at least one year in an English speaking country (as a
foreign exchange student, for example) or should have worked
in a hospital in which English was spoken.
-
Preferably have at least 2 years of work experience as a nurse
in the areas of Adult Critical Care.
-
Obtain a US
state nursing license and a
VisaScreen™
certificate.
-
Ability to pay all cost to obtain a US nursing license and
the
VisaScreen™
certificate (approximately US$1,600)
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Due to the current visa situation in the United States, we
recommend that nurses should have obtained either a
Bachelor's or a Master's Degree in Nursing if they want to
work in the United States.
If
you are a European nurse, we do recommend that you take a Medical English language training
course offered by the
Centre for Communication in Health Care
in Frankfurt, Germany. You can find more information
here.
Please
understand that all information we provide is intended for
nurses who want to work with European Medical Staffing to obtain
the credentials needed to work in the United States and to
obtain employment with our help. This site is not
intended as a do-it-yourself guide. We strongly discourage
anyone from attempting to try to go through this process on
their own. Your chance of success is much greater with
the help of our experts.
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