Working as a Nurse in the United States
| Immigration Articles >> Living in the United States >> Working as a Nurse in the United States |
 |
 The Nursing Relief for Disadvantaged Areas Act of 1999 introduced the
H-1C visa which allowed foreign nurses to temporarily work in the United States.
The time period was limited to three years with no extensions. The U.S.
Department of Labor classified the registered nurse
occupation as experiencing significant shortages. It was deemed that the nurse shortage was not only
negatively affecting the United States but other countries as well. This
worldwide shortage of
nurses was predicted to become more prevalent in
the upcoming years. To reduce the nurse shortage, hospitals throughout the U.S. have
increased wages and limited work shifts to no longer than 12 hours among other
improvements. While this has helped attract more individuals to the
nursing
profession, the shortage still continues. Many are concerned that despite recent
changes that positively effected recruitment and retention, the fact that many
of the current nurses are on the brink of retirement and the demand for medical
care continues to increase, no easy solution exists. Demand for nurses heavily
outweighs the supply of registered nurses.
Associations such as the ANA (American Nurses Association), which has the
largest membership of registered nurses, has publicly voiced concerns about
increasing the number of H-1C visas. The ANA maintains that an increase in H-1C visas could
potentially lead to the exploitation of foreign
nurses. Nurses from foreign countries might be
forced to work unreasonable hours, or as aides to other nurses. The ANA
claims that they have received surmounting complaints about the exploitation of
foreign nurses in the United States. In addition, the ANA believes that the U.S. needs to address
the nursing shortage by first concentrating their efforts domestically rather
than trying to recruit foreign nurses. Because there is believed to be a
worldwide shortage of nurses, taking a nurse away from his or her home country
would only further compromise the situation. Others believe that the ANA is trying to disguise
their true intentions of acting in the best interest of their members. While
some of these claims may be valid, there are other reasons why foreign nurses
may find the U.S. to be an attractive place to work. Working conditions, wages,
and opportunities may be better in the United States than in their home countries.
It is important to note that
foreign nurses allowed to work in the U.S. must
meet certain qualifications; thus, not just any
nurse can work in the United States. Due to the nursing shortage that continues
to exist in the United States, many believe that bringing in foreign nurses
to work even temporarily serves to assist American hospitals and provide
better medical care to its patients. The H-1C visa classification expired on June
13, 2005.
There is currently no separate nurse visa classification in the United States.
However, there are two ways that foreigners wishing to work as registered nurses
in the United States can apply:
- H-1B Work Visa
- TN Work Visa (NAFTA - North American Free Trade Agreement)
The H-1B Visa has been successfully used to employee registered
nurses (RN)
in different states. In order for the petitioning employer to hire a foreign
RN, the registered nurse must qualify for a specialty occupation. Although
general RNs will not typically be eligible for H-1B status, certain
specialized nursing occupations are likely to require a bachelor’s or higher
degree as the minimum requirement for entry into that specialized field.
Consequently, those positions have a great chance of satisfying the
H-1B
requirements.
Canadian and Mexican citizens may work in the
United States in a specialty occupation under the NAFTA
agreement. This visa classification is called a
TN visa. Working as an RN is on the NAFTA list of approved professional occupations. However, there are particular
requirements such as professional skills and criteria that need to be
satisfied.
Related Articles:
|
Back to Immigration Articles
