Becoming a Nurse in New Zealand

Given the bleak employment outlook locally and the lingering visa retrogression in the United States, filipino registered nurses are now looking elsewhere for employment opportunities.

In this report by GMA News, New Zealand is reportedly looking to hire filipino nurses to tend to its aging populace.

So, how exactly does one become a nurse in New Zealand? This blogger did some reading and here's what I found:

Applicants for registration are required to provide evidence that:

• they have an equivalent international nursing qualification

• are competent to practise within their scope of practice

• are fit for registration, which includes the ability to communicate effectively in English for the purpose of practising nursing.

All overseas applicants must also supply evidence of nursing practice hours for the past three years while registered as a nurse. This must be in written format and verified by their employers.

A comprehensive guide in applying for registration with the Nursing Council of New Zealand is provided in this GUIDE while the application form is available HERE.

Both files require Adobe Reader to open. Download Adobe Reader from this link.

PGMA's Brother-in-Law Files Bill Requiring Nurses and Other Professionals Mandatory Local 2-Year Service Prior to Working Abroad

Negros Oriental Rep. Ignacio “Iggy” Arroyo is proposing that all registered nurses and other professionals such as doctors, pharmacists, midwives, medical technologists, physical therapists, engineers, teachers, sailors, accountants, interior designers, nutritionists and criminologists should be required to work locally for two years before they are allowed to seek employment abroad.

House Bill 04580 otherwise known as the Mandatory Two-Year Domestic Service for all Filipino Registered Professional Act was filed on July 1, 2008 and is currently pending in the lower house of Congress.

Meanwhile, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines secretary-general Ernesto Herrera called the bill, "absolutely unfair and highly discriminatory."

He added, "We have a huge glut of professionals in many sectors. In the case of nurses, the main reason they are leaving the country is because wages here are grossly inadequate. And the pay is meagre, precisely because of the massive surplus of nurses. This is the law of supply and demand at work."

Pinoy R.N. did some research and found other 'nurse' bills and resolutions pending in the 14th congress (July 1, 2007 to present) that are of interest to filino nurses and student nurses. A quick rundown of these bills and resolution are available below.

House Bill 01252
Author: Congressman Al Francis D. Bichara
Filed: July 24, 2007
Summary: The bill authorizes health authorities to devise a pay scheme for government doctors and nurses free from the limitations imposed under the salary standardization law.

House Bill 02719
Author: Congressman Mark Llandro L. Mendoza
Filed: September 26, 2007
Summary: The bill requires all medical doctor, nurses and dentists and other medical workers who graduated from public/state colleges or universities to render a mandatory two (2) years rural medical service.

House Resolution 00605
Proponent: Congressman Magtanggol T. Gunigundo
Filed: May 26, 2008
Summary: Directs the congressional subcomittee on labor and employment to conduct an investigation, in aid of legislation, on framework, programs, and vision of the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), Commission on Higher Education (CHED), Professional Regulation Commission (PRC), Board of Nursing (BoN), and other concerned agencies in providing jobs to nurses who are unable to find employment and those who failed in the nursing board exams.

Related Article:

• Nursing Shortage in the Philippines: The Real Score
• Proposed Legislations Seek Mandatory Service Period for Nurses

New Jersey Senator Files Bill Recapturing Unused Visa Numbers

RETROGRESSION UPDATE

Early this month, Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey filed a bill called The Visa Efficiency and E-Verify Extension Act of 2008.

The proposed legislation seeks to recapture unused or unclaimed employment-based visas and family-sponsored visas from fiscal years 1992 through 2007. It also provides for a mechanism allowing unused visa numbers in the future to be automatically made available for the next fiscal year effectively reducing, if not, completely eliminating backlogs (retrogression).

Senators Patty Murray (D-WA), Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Maria Cantwell (WA) are also co-sponsoring the bill.

Meanwhile, the Emergency Nursing Supply Relief Act (HR 5924) is gaining some positive progress in the U.S. Congress as it was voted favorably by the members of the congressional subcommittee on Immigration last August 1st.

The number of congressmen co-sponsoring the bill is now up to 17.

Related Link:
September 2008 Visa Bulletin

More Basic IV Therapy Training Schedule (August - December)

Update (Aug. 13, 2008): More schedules added.

We got word that the slots for the IV therapy training schedules we posted earlier were full. So, here's another round of training schedules for the month of August courtesy of M. Bolivar (caretaker) and Noel Banez.

Aug. 18, 2008-Aug. 20, 2008 Medical Center Muntinlupa
Aug. 20, 2008-Aug. 22, 2008 New Era General Hospital
Aug. 20, 2008-Aug. 22, 2008 West Visayas State University Hospital
Aug. 21, 2008-Aug. 23, 2008 San Pablo Medical Center, San Pablo City
Aug. 24, 2008-Sep. 7, 2008 Veterans Memorial Medical Center
Aug. 27, 2008-Aug. 29, 2008 Quezon Memorial Hospital, Lucena City
Aug. 29, 2008 - Aug. 31, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City
Sept. 1, 2008 - Sept. 3, 2008 - Unciano Medical Center, Antipolo City
Sept. 12, 2008 - Sept. 14, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City
Sept. 15, 2008 - Sept. 17, 2008 - Manila Adventist Medical Center
Sept. 24, 2008 - Sept. 26, 2008 - Martinez Memorial Hospital, Caloocan City
Sept. 28, 2008 - Sept. 30, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City
Oct. 10, 2008 - Oct. 12, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City
Nov. 14, 2008 - Nov. 16, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City
Dec. 12, 2008 - Dec. 14, 2008 - Bulacan Provincial Hospital, Malolos City

As always, schedules posted may change without prior notice. Contact the respective Nursing/Training offices of the institutions listed for more details. Contact information are listed below for quick reference:

Medical Center Muntinlupa
38 National Rd., Putatan, Muntinlupa City
Tel 861-1687

New Era General Hospital
Don Mariano Marcos, New Era, Quezon City
tel. 924-4311

West Visayas State University Hospital
E. Lopez St., Jaro, Iloilo City
Tel. (033) 320-2431/ 329-0361

San Pablo Medical Center, San Pablo City
Maharlika Highway, Brgy., San
Rafael, San Pablo City, Laguna
(049) 562-0726

Veterans Memorial Medical Center
North Avenue, Diliman, Quezon City
tel. 927-6426 to 29

Quezon Memorial Hospital, Lucena City
Lucena City, Quezon
Tel. (042) 710-2440

Manila Adventist Medical Center
1975 Donada St., Pasay City
Tel No. (02) 5259191 loc 227 or 220

Bulacan Provincial Hospital
Capitol, Malolos City, Bulacan
Tel. No. (044) 796-0607

PRC Registration Schedule for New Nurses (June 2008)

The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) will begin the registration of new nurses (June 2008 Nurse Licensure Examination passers) on August 26, 2008 at the PRC office in Manila.

To facilitate an orderly registration, successful examinees are advised to observe the following registration schedule:

FROM	TO	DATE
AALA, Maricar C.	AQUINO, Rose Ann B.	Aug. 26, 08
AQUINO, Royce Chrisdale B.	BELDEVER, Aiza Laine C.	Aug. 27, 08
BENAVIDES, Karen Joy B.	CAPITO, Liezl Anne P.	Aug. 28, 08
CAPONPON, Micky C.	CRUZ, Rosemarie N.	Aug. 29, 08
CRUZ, Roxanne D.	DIAZ, Karen Christie R.	Sept. 1, 08
DIAZ, Karel Christyn M.	FERNANDEZ, Karla Iza E.	Sept. 2, 08
FENANDEZ, Karren Joy C.	GRANDE, Toni Grace E.	Sept. 3, 08
GRATELA, Mary Anne C.	LALU, Lizel G.	Sept. 4, 08
LALUNIO, Michael Vincent B.	MALLARI, Louie G.	Sept. 5, 08
MALLARI, Ma. Cristela B.	MONTALES, Precious Anne D.	Sept. 8, 08
MONTILLA, Claudine M.	PANGANIBAN, Angelleen D.	Sept. 9 08
PANGANIBAN, Cherry Anne L.	RAMOS, Angely B.	Sept. 10, 08
RAMOS, Anne Rachel B.	SALINDONG, Krizka Joyce M.	Sept. 11, 08
SALISI, Maria Vanessa P.	SUPNET, Oziel Karla S.	Sept. 12, 08
SUPSUP, Mhon Ryan B.	VARGAS, Maria Charessa Cristina D.	Sept. 15, 08
VARGAS, Roel II B.	ZUNIGA, Susana Jesika S.	Sept. 16, 08

Those with errors in their name or birth date are advised to bring an NSO-issued certificate of live birth (birth certificate) when they register.

(Thanks to M. Bolivar for sending this in.)

Introducing the Pinoy R.N. Toolbar

Two years ago, Pinoy R.N. debuted NurseCalc® -- a web application that featured useful online tools for nurses and student nurses. NurseCalc® later evolved to include mobile phone and Pocket PC versions. Recognizing the usefulness of the innovative NurseCalc® web application, several other nursing sites have adopted the handy tool and put it on their website as well.

In keeping with the tradition of bringing the latest innovations to nurses and student nurses, both local and abroad, Pinoy R.N. is proud to introduce a new innovation called, Pinoy R.N. Toolbar.

The new Pinoy R.N. Toolbar lets users:

• Access the latest nursing news and information with a single click
• Stay up-to-date without leaving any website they are currently viewing
• Get late-breaking news headlines such as nurse licensure exam results
• Use handy search tools to find exactly what you they are looking for
• Get notified instantly when they receive new e-mails
• Get a quick view of the latest weather forecasts
• Block annoying pop-ups when visiting any website
• Launch specialized gadgets and play mini-games
  
• Listen to online FM radio and podcasts without opening any application
• Add shortcuts to commonly-used applications such as Microsoft office and Calculator
• ...and host of other customizations and tools

With the Pinoy R.N. Toolbar, all the latest nursing information and updates are just a click away.

Upgrade your internet experience now, download the Pinoy R.N. Toolbar now by clicking HERE.

Note: Some anti-virus programs MISTAKENLY tags the Pinoy R.N. toolbar as malicious software. This is because the toolbar is a browser plug-in. Rest assured that our toolbar does NOT contain any malicious code. Pinoy R.N. respects your privacy, click here to view the Pinoy R.N. toolbar privacy policy.

Application Deadline for the November 2008 Nurse Licensure Examinations

This blogger has been getting a lot of e-mail inquiries about the deadline for the filing of application in the November 2008 Nurse Licensure Examinations.

For the benefit of everyone, here are the dates that prospective nursing board examinees should mark in their calendar:

• October 17, 2008 (Friday) - Deadline for filing of Applications for the November 2008 Nursing Board Exam
• November 29 - 30, 2008 (Saturday & Sunday) - Examination dates for the November 2008 Nursing Board Exam

A step-by-step guide in applying for the nurse licensure examination is also provided at Pinoy R.N.'s Featured Articles section.

Related Link:
PRC BON Memorandum No. 03 Series 2008