Nursing in Canada
Move Your Career Forward in British Columbia
Make a living while making a difference
British Columbia is moving public health care forward, with some of the highest nursing wages in Canada, new nurse-to-patient ratios, and stronger patient care. Advance your nursing career in a remarkable place where progress, nature, and community come together.
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Elidh
Born in Scotland
Now working as RN in
Victoria, BC, Canada
Province Announces Minimum Nurse-to-Patient Ratios, Retention and Recruitment Investments
Together with the BCNU, the Ministry of Health has established minimum nurse-to-patient ratios for six health-care settings in acute care facilities. Examples include most adult medical and surgical units, where the ratio will be one nurse to every four patients and high-acuity units where it will be one nurse to two patients. This progress is supported by a $237 million investment for recruitment and retention, including: expanding the Provincial Rural Retention Incentive, providing signing bonuses for nurses who join GoHealthBC, offering signing bonuses to work in certain rural and remote communities, offering signing bonuses for difficult-to-fill vacancies in urban and metro communities, offering a nursing-student tuition credit, expanding access to bridging education for internationally educated nurses (IENs), increasing the availability of bursaries for nursing students (including bursaries for Indigenous students), launching a Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) to Registered Nurse (RN) Bridging Pilot Program, and providing new graduates with bursaries for their licensing exams.
Click here to read more about the new initiatives to support nursing in BC.
This site is maintained by Health Match BC, a free health professional recruitment service that is becoming part of BCHealthCareers.ca. While we complete this transition, Health Match BC programs and services will remain unchanged.
Licensing
All internationally educated nurses (IEN) must meet the mandatory requirements to be eligible for registration in BC as determined by the BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM). This applies to anyone working as a Registered Nurse (RN), Registered Psychiatric Nurse (RPN) or Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) in British Columbia. Health Match BC’s Navigation Services for internationally educated nurses will assist you in navigating the registration process and learning about financial supports that you may be able to benefit from.
Financial Support
Through Health Match BC, the Province will assist Internationally Educated Nurses (IENs) pursuing registration with the BC College of Nurses and Midwives with financial support through bursaries. The bursaries will offset the costs of an IEN’s international credential assessment, English language testing, skill evaluation, and educational upgrading. Financial support for IENs ranges from $300 to approximately $16,000, depending on the assessments and/or upgrading required.
Kelly
RN working in BC,
born in Brazil
Eilidh
RN working in BC,
born in Scotland
Immigration Support
To meet the demand for skilled and qualified health care professionals, British Columbia introduced the BC Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP). The program was created to expedite the immigration process for health care workers by providing a pathway to permanent residency. Health Match is here to help. The Health Match BC Navigation team will support you as you navigate your application with BC PNP and obtain permanent resident status in Canada.
Why British Columbia (BC), Canada?
Canada is one of the most dynamic and multicultural countries across the globe. Offering free public health care and education to all its citizens and permanent residents, it also has an extremely high quality of living and is one of the strongest economies in the world. British Columbia, which is also known as BC, is Canada’s westernmost province and home to 5.2 million people.
British Columbia has a lot to offer. Not only in its epic landscapes, clean cities, and friendly people but also in safety, work satisfaction and health care. We’re proud of our wide range of industries, a rich history that stretches back 10,000 years, and a diverse, multicultural population.
If you love the outdoors, you’ll find a new love in British Columbia. We have miles of beaches, lush rainforests, inland deserts, rocky coastlines, and a vibrant wine region. Skiing and mountain climbing are also popular activities. There’s no shortage of opportunity, recreation, and fun.
Communities in BC are culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse, with immigrants making up a high proportion of BC’s population. The vibrant multicultural atmosphere and excellent quality of life have made BC a major destination for newcomers, with over 28% of the population born outside of Canada and more than 40,000 immigrants from around the world arriving in BC every year.
Working in British Columbia
British Columbia offers outstanding and diverse opportunities, to not only build your career, but to forge your own lifestyle. The possibilities are many and the choice is yours.
BC has a variety of nursing positions available across the province, including acute care, long-term care, community, leadership, and mental health. The working environments in BC’s health system are collaborative, supportive and innovative, ensuring you sustain a rewarding, successful and dynamic career.
Whether you choose to work in rural communities or urban areas, BC’s spectacular scenery and remarkable recreational experiences are unmatched. Given the easy access to the outdoors throughout the year, enjoying a balanced life, is distinctly BC.
With fulfilling career opportunities in strong, supportive communities and nature at your doorstep with unlimited outdoor adventure – you can build the life you love.
Public Health Employers
In British Columbia, our health care system is administered by the provincial government. Being a public system means everyone who lives in British Columbia has access to the medical care they need. Our health system is structured to reflect and celebrate the diversity of our province. As a health care professional in British Columbia, you’ll find opportunities to work across our entire province.
In BC, we have eight public health employers that govern, plan and deliver health care services to the people in BC. Five of our public health employers are regionally based and provide service to a particular geographic area. We also have a provincial health authority that delivers provincial programs and specialized services, a faith-based health care provider, and the First Nations Health Authority, which is focused on improving the health and health outcomes for First Nations peoples across the province.
