Internationally Educated Nurses: Costly and time consuming assessment of credentials

Internationally Educated Nurses: Costly and time consuming assessment of credentials

Maxeen Estibar

SPECIAL REPORT: DEPROFESSIONALIZATION OF IMMIGRANTS

By Lea Luciano
The Philippine Reporter

Filipino Internationally Educated Nurses undergo a long and tedious process of getting their educational credentials assessed for them to practice their professions in Canada.

Like many IENs, Maxeen Estibar came to Alberta, Canada under the Live-in Caregiver Program to seek better work opportunities.

“I was already a Registered Nurse in the Philippines before going to Canada,” says Estibar.

“Initially, my friends and I planned to go to the UK, and then my aunt convinced me to try out Canada, so I grabbed the chance.”

She worked as a caregiver for two years while working on getting all her credentials ready for her assessment.

The Philippines is one of the largest labour exporters of healthcare professionals in Canada. According to the 2017 report by the Canadian Institute of Health Information, 34.1% of IENs registered across all nursing designation are from the Philippines.

Estibar submitted her application through NNAS or National Nursing Assessment Services, which is an assessment centre that assesses your academic credentials, prior work experience, and English language proficiency.
“Once you submit your application and pay the fees, they will send the assessment to you to let you know what level you are at and if you need to go back to school,” says Estibar.

“My assessment as a Licenced Practical Nurse (LPN) is comparable, but as a Registered Nurse (RN) it is only somewhat comparable and what that means is lack of experience or education, so they want me to take an exam called ARNAP.”

The Alberta Registered Nurses Assessment Program or ARNAP is a standardized examination that assesses the skill level of internationally educated nurses seeking nursing registration in Alberta. It will also assess the applicant’s language proficiency and comprehension, performance in client interactions, ethics, and professionalism. The cost to take this exam is $1900.

“You only have one chance to take ARNAP and if you fail you have to go back to school and it will be in your record.”

There is a group on Facebook called Pinoy Nurses IEN-NNAS which is a community created to assist Pinoy nurses transition into becoming registered nurses in Canada. Estibar joined the group while she was reviewing for one of her exams.

“When I asked who took [ARNAP], they told me that the passing rate is 5% and almost everybody failed. They even have experience working as a nurse in the UK and Saudi Arabia for 5 to 10 years already,” says Estibar.

“I was trying to find an alternative that’s why I moved to Ontario.”

She submitted her assessment in Ontario, and when her results came back, they said she can take her National Council Licensure Examination or NCLEX to get her licence as a registered nurse.

Estibar passed her exam and became a registered nurse last June 2020.

“When I compare my experience with my friends, the hardest process here in Canada is harder. For example, in the UK you only need to take the board exam and pass the IELTS.”

Another barrier for aspiring nurses is the language proficiency requirement.

The language proficiency test is an additional cost and is only valid for two years. The cost for IELTS is $325 while CELBAN, a nursing-specific language exam, costs $395.

The overall process of getting your foreign credentials assessed in Canada is costly and time-consuming, that’s why some IENs remain as caregivers or venture into a different career path.

Beth Quimson worked as a nurse for five years in the Philippines and Saudi Arabia before coming to Canada under the Live-in Caregiver Program in 2013.

“The process to become an RN, HCA, or LPN [in Canada] is really hard,” says Quimson.

“In our country, we graduate with a four-year bachelor’s degree but if you compare it to the Canadian standard, it’s not enough to continue your nursing career here and to do that you have to go back to school.”

Quimson says that pursuing her RN licence is not her top priority right now as she is currently focusing on raising her two children.