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Hello all,

My name is Gail and I live in Anchorage Alaska and work as a preop/PACU nurse while finishing my master's in family practice. I have been an RN for 5.5 yrs with the majority being in L&D. I will be graduating spring 2014 and my partner and I are looking to relocate to New Zealand fall of 2014. I have just started researching the registration process for nurses and nurse practitioners in New Zealand and would love some advice.
Any tips for the application process? I read there is possibly a year long wait list for the competency assessment program and am curious if nurses from America have had to meet this requirement and if it truly took a year to be able to start the program.
Will being a new graduate FNP make it more difficult to start my career in NZ? Would it be less painful if I worked in the USA as a FNP prior to moving? How is the job market in NZ for FNPs? What are some good groups/organization you have found helpful and suggest I join?
I have many questions but will limit it the the above for now. Thanks in advance for any/all responses.

Cheers,

Gail

Dear Gail, The process to apply to practice as a nurse practitioner in New Zealand (NZ) is rigorous.
I would like to suggest that you contact someone from the USA who has actually
worked in NZ and would understand the issues from that perspective. Contact
Pat Maybee at pmaybee@gmail.com or Ken Wysocki at ken.wysocki@me.com
Good luck,
Madrean

Thank you for the contacts Madrean, I appreciate your help.
-Gail

I guess you can migrate to New Zealand and work their but sometimes they might require you to write their board exam.

Kia Ora ( Hi in Maori) Gail

I am Canadian, have been living and working in NZ since 1998 and I am currently on the NP in PHC which is probably close to what you are referring to family practice. I will let you contact the NZ Nursing Council for all the "officialisation" and recognition of your education as it differs from every country. Their webiste is quite comprehensive and with today's easy email, you should not find it too difficult. However you might want to contact Mary Gagan at University of Auckland. Mary is from and trained in the US as an NP and has also been working as an NP in NZ in PHC. She might be able to enlight you on the "hills and valleys" of her journey! One of the thing you might have to consider is that the NP profession is relatively new to NZ and general practices are private businesses. By definition there is a bit of resistance from GPs to hire NPs as there has been little evidence that in increases the business. There are a bit more opportunities in rural areas where there is a lack of GPs and where some of the PHC clinics are administered through Trusts or PHOs or DHBs. Again it might pay that you get your head around the health system in NZ and all the funding/organisations so it gives you a clear picture of what to expect and where to direct your research.

Hope this helps,ml