Getting A nurse to The US

[SteveY]

Need some help, my sister in law is a nurse in the Philippines and would like to come here to work. Can anyone tell me what she needs to do or if there is anyone here in the Us that could help her. Any help would be appreciated.

[Ray]

... in response to Getting A nurse to The US, posted by SteveY on Mar 11, 2002

Steve,

I was reading something recently about foreign nurses and my understanding is that there is a very limited program to allow up to 500 foreign nurses per year to obtain an H-1C temporary 3-year visa if sponsored by a hospital. There are only a handful of hospitals that qualify and of the 500 visas, no more than 50 per year are allowed for any one state.

The requirements for the nurses to qualify are fairly stringent. Some people have implied that this may be one of the easiest ways for a Filipina to get a visa for the U.S., but I think marriage to a U.S. citizen is MUCH easier :-). My wife’s cousin came here from the Philippines about three years ago on a temporary special program that gave permanent resident immigrant visas to a limited number of registered nurses, but I believe that was a one-time shot.

You can find a whole lot of info at this site (click on ‘Nurses’ and start reading):

http://www.shusterman.com/

Ray

[Dave H]

... in response to Not as easy as it sounds..., posted by Ray on Mar 12, 2002

Hi Ray,

The 500 visas was for the Nursing Relief for Disadvantage Areas Act and is a temporary H-1C Visa. The law provides an opportunity for certain hospitals in medically underserved areas to employ these nurses. The total number of this category of visa issued nationally is 500 nurses.

It is difficult for LPN's (ASN-2 year degree) to immigrate, as they are not classified as professionals for immigration purposes. Registered nurses with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) are considered professionals, and thus qualify for an H-1B Visa. Philippine RN's have a BSN degree. If an employer can establish that a particular RN position requires a four-year degree (very common) a H-1B may be approved. The quota on the number of H-1B visas that can be issued during the federal fiscal year (Oct 1 to Sep. 30) is 115,000. The quota can be reached very quickly, last year around March (5 months). Congress currently is considering bills that would increase the quota again, which should help ease the nursing shortage somewhat.

You bring up a good point, "I think marriage to a U.S. citizen is MUCH easier." A word of caution: Many Philippine nurses know that too and some try to marry Americans for that purpose alone. The CGFNS test is expensive $300, retakes $200 and very difficult.

Dave H.

[Ray]

... in response to Re: Not as easy as it sounds..., posted by Dave H on Mar 12, 2002

...for the correction Dave.

Just curious, do many of the nurses coming in from the Philippines get petitioned by their employers for immigrant status? Has the Mrs. taken her RN licensure exam yet?

What's this about increasing the H-1B limit? For nurses only or for the whole ball of wax? We sure as hell don't need any more stinking engineers coming in! :-)

Ray

[Dave H]

... in response to Thanks..., posted by Ray on Mar 13, 2002

Hi Ray,

The Mrs. is studying for her NCLEX exam as we speak. I think that the increase in H-1B limit will be only for medical professionals.

I really don't know how many Filipina nurses get petitioned by their employers for immigrant status. Probably not many with hospitals. I think it would be more common with a small private clinic or medical practice, with a very valued employee. Often, single nurses end up meeting and marrying someone here, then adjust status. One disadvantage for nurses coming over on a H-1B Visa is that they can't switch employers without losing their status. They must return home and get repetitioned by the new employer. I don't believe they can work a second job with another employer. Any extra money would have to come from overtime with the petitioning employer. Sometimes nurses arrive, only to find that they are underpaid by local standards. What sounds like big money in the Philippines, may not be so much, due to the high cost of living in the US. Being Filipinas, they make do by working as much overtime as possible and living very simple lives. I have known many Filipinas who have shared a one bedroom apartment with 3 or more other women. Usually they work on several different shifts when possible.

Dave H.

[Ray]

... in response to Good Question..., posted by Dave H on Mar 13, 2002

Well, I wish the wife success on her exam.

When my cousin-in-law came over, she failed the nurses exam on the first shot. She was devastated and got really depressed. Even though she had a green card, she was packed and had  ticket for a return flight to the Phils. She just totally gave up because she had never failed an exam in her life. The other cousin-in-law and I talked her into staying and taking another shot at it. After hitting the books hard for a couple of months, she re-took the exam and passed with flying colors.

She quickly landed a job at a nursing home and after 2 months on the job, her employer was so impressed with her work that they put her in charge of the whole facility on the graveyard shift. Maybe it was the term “graveyard shift” that scared the hell out of her, but she was absolutely terrified of the responsibility. She asked me what would happen if one of the patients croaked on her shift. I told her not to worry about it because some of those old geezers were over 100 years old and they had to go sometime. I told her to just pull a sheet over their head like they do in the movies and wait for the staff physician to show up in the morning and write up a death certificate. She started laughing so hard that SHE almost croaked (I didn’t think it was That funny).

Anyway, now she works weekends at the nursing home and about 60-70 hours a week at a large hospital and she loves the work. She sends home a lot of balikbayan boxes too :-). And it’s funny that you should mention it, because she shares a studio apartment with another single Filipina nurse. They just barely have room for a TV. You must have a crystal ball Dave (or maybe 2?).

Ray (lead balls)

[Dave H]

... in response to Re: Good Question..., posted by Ray on Mar 13, 2002

Hey Ray,

That exam is a killer! I was reading some of the questions in the study books today. I don't have enough of my brain functioning at one time to understand most of the questions. %-O

A studio apartment usually has 2 Filipinas. I can't imagine how many could live in a 2 bedroom. ;o)) They usually like to live close to the hospital so they can walk to work.

Dave H.

[Ray]

... in response to Yep..., posted by Dave H on Mar 13, 2002

Dave,

Was that one of the exam questions?

"If a studio apartment usually has 2 Filipina nurses, how many Filipina nurses could live in a 2-bedroom apartment?"

Man, those are tough questions! What were the multiple choice answers? Or was that a true/false question? :-)

Ray

[Dave H]

... in response to Re: Yep..., posted by Ray on Mar 13, 2002

Ray,

What throws me is when they have answers like 1.5.
;o)) Let's see...studio = 2, a 1 bedroom = 4, a 2 bedroom =? Maybe 6 or 8... how about 7? Better yet, 6.5 or 7.5. ))

Dave H.

[Bear]

... in response to Getting A nurse to The US, posted by SteveY on Mar 11, 2002

The Palma Family runs a recruiting service here and said they could use 200 Nurses.  Even asked if I we knew Filipinas qualified.

Bear

[shadow]

... in response to We have connections, posted by Bear on Mar 11, 2002

I know of one qualified that would be very interested. Palma family? Do they have a web site? How does a person contact them?  Larry.

[Bear]

... in response to Re: We have connections, posted by shadow on Mar 12, 2002

I'll give you their contact info.  They just brought 4 Filipinas here 5 weeks ago and said they could place 200 more.  One has become a pretty good friend of ours, Sonya.

The Palma family are the ones who helped me with a few contacts in Manila.  They used to work for the R.P. government but now he is retired and his wife is a nurse.  They used their time and efforts to help fill some of the  open nurses positions that they know about.

Bear & Honey

[Dave H]

... in response to Getting A nurse to The US, posted by SteveY on Mar 11, 2002

Hi Steve,

She needs to successfully complete the CGFNS exam (Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools)which costs around $300. http://www.cgfns.org/cgfns/index.html  There is a 20+% nursing shortage in the US. Many hospitals actively recruit Philippine nurses and will pay for visa processing and travel expenses. Check with the hospitals in your area. The hospital district where my wife works and our friend is an administrator, just hired 100 Filipino/a nurses. They are not even here yet (takes about a year) and our friend has already asked us if we know any more Filipina nurses with CGFNS. Let me know if you have any more questions.

Dave H.

[shadow]

... in response to Re: Getting A nurse to The US, posted by Dave H on Mar 11, 2002

I know of one, and she already has the cgfns. Where do I send her resume?  Larry.

[Dave H]

... in response to Re: Re: Getting A nurse to The US, posted by shadow on Mar 12, 2002

Hi Larry,

If you can email it to me, I will forward it to the recruiter. She will need contact information.

I am happy to hear that you are having a great time!

Dave H.